


Telam

by Kuromori (Black_Forest), sometimesafangirl



Category: Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle
Genre: Adult Content, Complete, Cyberpunk, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-04-27
Updated: 2014-10-27
Packaged: 2017-12-09 17:46:25
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 14
Words: 59,653
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/776245
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Black_Forest/pseuds/Kuromori, https://archiveofourown.org/users/sometimesafangirl/pseuds/sometimesafangirl
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>This story takes place a few years after the events in the Tsubasa manga, and the group lands themselves in a dystopian world of cybernetics, cables, and bar codes. Enjoy this ode to Cyberpunk Tsubasa style. (This story is a joint fic where one person played one character and the other person another)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Toxic

Upon the roof of the first skyscraper he could find, Fai looked down over the city. There was one word to describe this world: Toxic. Lights of every color moved through the streets and dotted the landscape, but despite their efforts, a deep green haze seeped down from the clouds, giving every spot of life an aura of poison. 

In the distance he could see the city’s central hub. High rises that sprang up from the wastes like metallic stalagmites, each one of varying size and importance. Given the normal societal breakdown, the more central it is, the more power and influence it has. His eyes lost visual through the haze and clouds while they followed the centralized building up. That was the main governmental building, and the rest of the city grew out of it. Within a webbing of roads, cables and light up signs that touted the need for people to buy their products were the empty promises of the betterment of life. And the people, writhing around like trapped flies, alive and well, just waiting for something to come along and drain them of whatever they had left. Perhaps further into the matrix where those buildings got cleaner, there would be more of willingness to thrive, but here on the street below him he saw empty husks. They went about their lives unaware of anything more or less. 

Fai jumped down into the back alley, landing as if he had barely taken a step. They’d been in this world for four days and had yet to come across anything that could help them figure out why they were here. They were used to running blind but in this case there wasn’t a scrap of information, not even a tingle of dimensional disturbance in this place. This led them to split up, keeping Mokona in a central location and panning out as far as his influence would allow. They wanted to cover more ground but so far Fai was coming up empty.

He sat down on the seat of his bike, one booted leg bending up against the front fender as he waved his hand over the top it to ‘wake it up’. 

“Bar scan, please,” An electronic voice asked, thinly veiled behind a female’s tenor. Fai obeyed with echoed etiquette as he turned his wrist to show a series of lines with different thicknesses and numbers under them. “Thank you. Hoverbike activated.”

“Thank you,” Fai responded as he swung his other leg around. His weight pushed the bike down a little before the magnetic field below the streets adjusted and pushed it back up. This world did have many wondrous things despite the dystopian feel. 

The others would be meeting up soon, and he was already behind schedule. Fai smiled as he picked route that would take just a little longer. ‘That one’ also seemed to get a bit testy when Fai took his time with these things, but that was part of the fun about taking his time. It was so easy to get that big frame to work itself into a frenzy, and it was all he ever needed to lighten his own mood.

He laughed a little while he rounded a corner at a speed that was illegal (or at least should be). He wanted to be just late enough to drive Kurogane crazy but not late enough to make Syaoran worry, and as he pulled up to small building that they were currently calling home he could see that large frame looking out the window at him, his brows crunch up and red eyes piercing down into his own blue. Fai chuckled as he got off the bike, his thigh length boots groan as he straightened his legs. 

The clothing of this time was certainly uncomfortable for someone of his size. There weren’t many choices for someone of the male orientation with long legs and a slender build outside of going to what could only be described as a fetish shop. But Fai made due without having to expose anyone in the group to alternate life styles. He managed to mesh a style of women’s and men’s and came to a close enough fit. Skin hugging pants were tucked away inside his boots as a jacket protected his exposed midriff thanks to the shirt that just didn’t seem long enough to cover his torso completely.

He hopped up the stairs, his feet clomping behind him, and pushed open the door with a princely presentation. “Kurosama! I’m hooome!”

"No shit you're home." Kurogane barked, still standing by the window, arms crossed as he turned to look at the man who came through the door. "Late, as usual, and I imagine just as empty-handed as we are, hm?" He stepped away from the window, walking towards the couch. With an over-exaggerated motion and a look of mild discomfort, he sat down and tried to tug at the leather pants in an effort to make them breathe. "This place sucks." It was no secret that Kurogane was incredibly annoyed with this world. Nothing made sense to him. The technology was too much, and the fact that Fai and Syaoran seemed to easily adapt made it almost unbearable. 

Unfortunately, there was nothing he could do about it. Today's search was just as fruitless as yesterday's, if not more so. The only thing Kurogane found was a headache, but he attributed that to the foul air here. The sooner they could get out of here, the better. "So why were you late this time?" The frown remained as he crossed his arms again.

“Oh? Was Kurosama worried about me?” Fai felt the smirk snake across his face. He walked further into the room, disregarding the ninja’s question for the moment as he sat on the arm of the couch to remove his legs from their confinements before he fell back on to the cushions.

Fai sighed softly as he closed his eyes. So the others were just as lucky as he was. That meant Syaoran was getting frustrated and anxious to move on. “I just lost track of time. This city is so big!” He flopped on to his stomach; Fai’s long limbs sprawled over each end of the couch and stretching over Kurogane’s lap, overlooking the man’s own comfort. “Right Mokona?!”

“Yes! This whole city doesn’t seem to have an end! Everyone was so far but no one saw the exit!” The little white fluff ball sat with the star-crossed boy, looking way too serious for its size and shape, while the two of them pondered over what Fai guessed to be a map judging by the key in the corner that flapped over the edge of the table.

“Hmm perhaps the entire world is just like this?” Fai sat up and held his chin in his hand thinking for a moment before he pushed himself up and walked over to the map and placed his finger at its center. 

“Perhaps tomorrow we should head toward this area. Kurosama and I will go together so that Daddy won’t worry so much about Mommy getting lost,” He said as he turned his eyes up to the larger man. 

"Who the hell was worried about you getting lost?" Kurogane muttered gruffly, not moving from his position on the couch, though his eyes followed Fai as he walked to the table. "It'd be a whole hell of a lot quieter if you did."

"You wouldn't do well if it was so quiet. You'd start muttering under your breath wondering where the hell he is." Syaoran chuckled a little as he straightened himself up. "I think perhaps you should be more worried about getting lost with Faisan." 

"Shut up." The ninja muttered again, sinking a little further into the couch, arms still crossed. "The hell are we going to do if we split up anyway? It's not like that'd be a good idea. We should all just go."

"That's an even worse idea. At least you two would be able to observe more without me around." Syaoran shook his head and looked up at Kurogane before his gaze shifted to Fai. "Besides, you could always blend in as a husband and a wife." He chuckled again.

“It wouldn’t be good for us to travel together either way. Two people can get around a lot quicker than four,” Fai traced his fingers over the map before bringing his hand to his hip. “And I’ll have my hands full with Kurosama anyway. Daddy unfortunately has a son who is far more mature than him.” Fai placed his hand on Syaoran’s head before he ruffled his hair a bit. It was a gentle chiding gesture. The boy was on the verge of manhood and had spent a good portion of his teenage years jumping through dimensions with an angry ninja and a flippant mage, and his sense of humor was becoming warped because of it.

“But I think it would be better for Syaorankun and Mokona to head to God Hand tomorrow and speak to the locals. He’s far more approachable than either Kurosama or I would be,” He continued.

“Compared to you?” Syaoran raised an eyebrow at Fai. 

“Yes, you would probably have better luck there than we would,” The mage said as he walked away from the table to start brewing some tea. He could feel Syaoran's eyes on his back trying to study him, but the boy would do it simply because Fai asked him. The place known locally as the God Hand was a city within a city, unofficially set aside for orphans, and no one would know this world better than the children of its streets. 

“Alright,” Syaoran stood up, and Mokona hopped up on his shoulder. “I’m going to bed then, so I can head out first thing.”

“Sleep well,” Fai came back into the room with two cups of in his hands, nodded as the boy said his goodnights and headed down the hallway.

“We should do the same,” Fai sat back down on the couch and handed Kurogane his cup. “It’s not the same as green tea, but I tried my best to make it the way you like it.”  
Kurogane liked his tea strong and bitter, and Fai never understood that about the man. Why would he want each sip to be like a punishment? Fai enjoyed mixing his with milk, honey, and a touch of sugar. But that was just one of those things Fai chalked up to them being perfectly mismatched.

"Did you? Why? Is it a peacemaking attempt for saying I'm a handful and calling me immature?" Kurogane took the tea and looked at him. As usual, there was a slight bark to his tone, though he tried to keep his voice down since Syaoran was going to sleep. "You should look at yourself before you say those things about me." 

His eyes turned away from the mage and scanned the room before settling on the hallway that led to the bedrooms. "Soon enough he's going to be too old to pass as an innocent kid. Especially with the kind of talk that comes out of your mouth." Kurogane drank a little of his tea before he stood and walked to the kitchen, putting the cup down on the counter and stretching his arms over his head. He kept his back to the mage so he wouldn't see the slight wince as the muscles in one arm relaxed, but the tension in the other shoulder increased. 

Placing his arms back at his sides, he turned once again. "I'm going to bed. I'm sure you have something ridiculous planned for tomorrow, so I'm going to get whatever rest I can." A shake of his head and the ninja was walking down the hallway.

Fai laid his head back over the couch as Kurogane walked into the kitchen. His offer of tea didn’t have any ulterior motives but the ninja would never believe that, so there was no point in offering up a defense, but that was mostly because Fai didn’t think he was wrong in the first place. 

Kurogane was young still. A human in his mid-twenties was still brash, unreasonable, hot tempered and topped off with his natural personality it created a volatile mix. While he was calmer now than he had been in the past, Kurogane’s lash outs could still be unpredictable. Even for Fai who felt the ninja wince a room away. 

“I’ll join you,” The blonde followed Kurogane into the bedroom and watched him for a moment. “Hurting today huh? Sit down I’ll get some ointment for it.”

Kurogane grunted his response to the mage's question. He wasn't going to admit to anything, and Fai should have known that. Instead, he slowly pulled his shirt off and tossed it to the side, sighing almost in relief as the restricting cloth, if you could call it cloth, was removed. He sat on the bed and looked over at the other man.

"It's fine," He mumbled.

"Is it?" Replied the mage as he pulled a jar out of one of his bags. "Still, it's a good thing I have this."

Fai walked over to the bed as he unscrewed the top of the jar. He had picked up the salve two months ago in a jungle world were the tribe's shamans were well known for their medicinal knowledge, even to people of other dimensions. He crawled up behind the ninja. "It will feel better. Don't be so stubborn."

"Who's being stubborn? If I said it's fine, it's fine," Kurogane snapped, but made no move to pull away from the mage when he crawled behind him.

"Yes yes," Fai's voice was dismissive but his touch was light as he applied the ointment to Kurogane's shoulders. "No matter how many times I ask, you're just going to say the same thing.” He carefully started to rub the lotion in, his fingers tracing over the lines of his muscles to find where flesh met machine.

"That's because the answer is always the same." Kurogane grimaced a little when those cool fingers touched his heating flesh, but he ignored the weird sensation as best he could. "It's not like you believe me."

"No, I believe you think it's fine. I just don't agree," Fai smirked as his fingers pressed just a little harder into Kurogane's shoulder. 

"I think this arm is holding up the best so far," As he spoke Fai slid his palm down the upper part of the prosthetic. It was colder than the rest of Kurogane's body but covered in a soft flesh that copied the feel of the ninja's own almost perfectly.

"If I think it's fine, then it's fine." The ninja barked and huffed a bit, his head shaking just slightly. "I don't know why you seem to insist that I don't know what it feels like, or if it hurts or not." He muttered a bit, shifting a little when the mage's hand started touching more than his shoulder.

"It's the least I can do, isn't it?" Fai's hand pulled away, but came to rest against one broad shoulder.

"As opposed to what, believing me?" Kurogane looked over his shoulder at him.

Blue eyes were lowered to the bed for a long moment before he looked back up at Kurogane. It would be the same argument rehashed again and again. Fai would try to take the blame for his arm; Kurogane would deny it and call him an idiot. "Just let me worry a little bit, okay?"

"Even when there's no need to worry?" One brow arched as the ninja regarded the mage. "Or when you worry and look sad like that?"

Fai didn't know why he was startled by the words. He didn't try to hide his expression, and Kurogane wasn't known for his subtlety. "I look sad to you?"

"I said it didn't I? Am I the kind of guy that says something he doesn't mean? I've been with you long enough to know when you look sad," Kurogane's voice was softer than usual, but still had that stern edge to it.

"No, you are the kind of guy that means everything he says," A smile quirked up the corner of Fai's mouth. "So I must still be the kind of guy you hate most huh?"

"When was the last time I told you that?" With a grimace, Kurogane shook his head. "I can't even remember, can you?"

"Yeah, it's safe to say I have a pretty clear recollection of that day," Lightening the mood Fai wrapped his arms around the larger man's frame as his face went into his shoulder. "Kurosama was so mean then. But... " He turn his face so he could see Kurogane's. "I won't say I didn't deserve it."

"Well, things were different then. You've changed, and you're not nearly as annoying and fake as you were then." Kurogane lifted his hand to rest it on one of the mage's arms.

"Kurosama..." Fai felt a tingle in his cheeks.

"Hm?" Kurogane blinked at him. "Are you getting a fever?"

 

"Hmn? Ah! No," Fai pulled himself away, his hand coming to push his hair out of his face in a thinly veiled attempt to check his temperature. "At least I don't think so."

Kurogane turned and lifted his hand to gently pull Fai's away and touch his forehead instead. "Hm. It doesn't feel too warm..."

That touch stopped everything. Fai could do little more than lean into that large, warm hand. His eyes started to close as he sunk a bit more into his palm. Strange how such a gesture could make the mage’s mind go blank.

Kurogane blinked at that, slowly pulling his hand back from his forehead to touch his cheek. "Hey...are you tired or something?"

"Hmn?" Fai turned his head up to him.

Kurogane's face was mere inches from Fai's as he lowered his voice, "I asked if you were tired."

"No, I'm fine," There was an airy quality to Fai's voice as his eyes danced between Kurogane's lips and eyes as he spoke. "I... have to shower though."

"Now?" Kurogane's voice was a mere whisper now as he started to close the distance between them, his eyes locked onto Fai's.

"Yeah, it’s probably a good idea if I’m feeling a bit warm," The mage pulled away , using his own hand to touch his cheek. His skin did feel a bit warmer now than did before. "Maybe there's something weird in the tea of this world."

Kurogane watched Fai pull back, so he dropped his hand and moved away from him, watching him with dark eyes. "If you're sick, then a cold shower isn't going to help you. It will only make you feel worse." He shook his head and looked off to the side. "Do whatever you think is necessary, but don't blame it on the tea. I'm not feverish, so it must be you."

"Well I won't argue that, I don’t really think I’m getting sick either. Either way-" Fai got up from the bed, stretching his lithe frame out before he removed his jacket and folded it over his arm as he bent down to pick up Kurogane's dis-guarded shirt.  
"I should clean up, the air in this town feels like it sticks to your skin," Fai ran his hand over the exposed part of his stomach to add emphasis.

"Do what you want," Kurogane mumbled as he laid down on the bed and turned so his bare back was to him, grumbling a bit.

Fai set the clothing down on a tiny chair in the corner of the room before he looked over his shoulder at him. "Something wrong?"

Kurogane grunted his response, keeping his back to him.

One finely arched eyebrow quirked up a little. Fai knew grumpy Kurogane very well. And this was certainly him. 

"Kurosama," He urged on and came to the side of the bed Kurogane crunched up to. "Did I say something to offend you?" Fai leaned down so his knees bent under him and his face was laying on the bit of pillow Kurogane's head didn't occupy. "Believe it or not I wasn't trying to this time."

"Just go take your shower, would you?" Kurogane was frowning, and when Fai came into his vision, he averted his eyes.

What was this now? Kurogane never turned his eyes away from any one.

"Kuropon..." Fai voice got a bit softer and little more concerned with the use of an old nickname. "Come on, the bath here is big enough for two. Maybe we can do that instead. I'll wash your back," Fai smiled from ear to ear as he poked Kuro's cheek.

"Don't want to." The ninja mumbled. "I'm not the one who was out later than we agreed, so I don't need to wash up." He kept his gaze averted despite the poking. 

The rise in Kurogane's stubborn huffiness just added fuel to Fai's need to break it. For some reason when the man got like this Fai couldn't leave him alone, and he wouldn't back down until Kurogane caved one way or another.  
"It will help the tension in your arm and also let the rest of your body relax," Fai sat down on the edge of the bed and started to move it just enough so it shook Kurogane. 

"The only thing that will get me to relax is if you fuck off and stop being annoying. I said I don't want to. I. Don't. Want. To." Kurogane shifted and rolled right over so his back was to the mage again.

Things stopped being fun when Fai realized the man was actually getting upset; even Fai knew when to cut his losses. 

"Alright, alright," He got up to go to the bathroom. His shower was quick and not without a small water purification spell placed on the spout.  
He came out a short time later and crawled in to the bed beside the flustered ninja. They never discussed their sleeping arrangements for the new house, but that was mostly a formality at this point. Unless Syaoran was hurt Fai's bed was always next to Kurogane.

At first, Kurogane was going to pretend to be asleep, but as he felt the mage climb into the bed, he shifted a little to make more room for him. He didn't speak or otherwise acknowledge Fai's presence.

"You should go to bed. We'll have a long day ahead of us tomorrow." He shifted his body slightly, one long leg peeking out from his robe before he shifted the blankets.

"I am in bed." Kurogane muttered.

It was safe to say he was still upset despite staying in bed with him. Fai sighed. He had no idea what he did that was out of the norm. So under the covers he reached his hand up to touch Kurogane's arm again. This time however it was one he could feel the ninja's warmth and strength through him, and he moved his body closer so he could feel that aura surround him. "I meant you should sleep."

"I was planning on it..." The bark was gone from the ninja's voice now, and he just sounded tired. For a moment, his muscles tensed at Fai's touch before they relaxed again.  
Fai turned himself around so he was on his stomach but not out of the feel of Kurogane's warmth. "Good night Kurosama." The mage whispered before closing his eyes.

"Aa..." Kurogane closed his eyes as well.


	2. Chemical

Morning never came smoothly in this world. The night was filled with unnatural light and noise. Even in the more secluded areas, there was always just enough noise to break the silence, but never enough to know what was going on. Daybreak, if you could call it that, was no better. The haze that hovered above the city choked the sunlight, making everything seem more dreary and dank.

Despite all of it, Kurogane's mornings were made worse by the tangle of limbs that tended to wrap around some part of him as he slept. It was no real secret that Fai was a restless sleeper, but on this particular morning, he gripped Kurogane's arm so tightly, that the ninja probably would have lost circulation if it hadn't been the replacement arm.

It took ten minutes just to slowly pull his arm free without disturbing the mage. It took another ten to move enough away from him to get out of bed. Once free, Kurogane was able to dress and leave the room without waking the other man.

As he walked to the kitchen to prepare breakfast, he frowned. Today they we going to search together, while the kid went elsewhere. That meant he would have to spend the entire day with Fai, and after the previous night, he wasn't sure he wanted to.

"Good morning," Syaoran yawned out his greeting as he poured himself something to drink and sat at the table. "I imagine you didn't sleep as well as you wanted to?"

Kurogane grunted a little and put a plate down in front of the boy before sitting with his own. "Just eat."

“How domesticated,” Came another voice from the hallway. Fai leaned his lithe frame against the wall, arms crossed over his chest as he watched the atypical morning scene. It wasn’t too often that Kurogane would make breakfast. Sometimes Fai even wondered if the bigger man knew how to cook, but even after knowing Kurogane for all these years he could still surprise him. At least he wasn’t boring. 

He walked further into the room, and it was obvious a mirror wasn’t on his priorities of things to look at this morning. Though even with his hair unbound and with waves pointing every which way, he still managed to maintain an aloof grace. He was fortunate in that he never had to try hard.

“What’s for breakfast?” Fai leaned back in the chair opposite of Syaoran. “Daddy better be making something good! We’re gonna need our strength for today!

Kurogane scowled and put another plate down in front of Fai, eyes narrowed as he regarded the other man. "The least you could do is look presentable when you come to the table." He muttered as he gathered the last of the food onto his own plate and sat down. That scowl never seemed to leave his face as he ate in silence.

Syaoran chuckled a little. "Seems like you had a better time sleeping than he did, Fai-san."

Fai observed the Ninja for a little longer. It was obvious the man didn’t sleep well. He looked grumpier than usual and even yelled at him for not looking ‘presentable’ at the table? He was the last person Fai would expect to care about something like that. Kurogane was on edge.

“Kurosama just needs some coffee and he’ll be fine.” The tone was light but the meaning behind it wasn’t lost. The words were dipped in caution for the ninja. It was a confectionary pitch that only one like Kurogane would pick up on. There was a very good reason he was sending Syaoran in the opposite direction, and while he knew Kurogane would never allow anything to happen to the kid, the mage didn’t want to take any chances. 

Fai had seen the inner city, albeit a glimpse. It was clean with no hint of the poison that lingered in auxiliary spirals of the city’s web. But it was the type of clean that could only be described as sterile, like a corpse in a funeral procession. Well kept, well dressed, void of the cause of death, and only for public viewing. 

"I am fine. I don't need any coffee. Don't be an idiot." Kurogane finished his food and stood to clean his plate, grumbling a little. He glanced over his shoulder at Syaoran. "You'll be okay without me there, right?" When the boy nodded, he turned back to the sink. 

When that was done, he walked out of the kitchen and sat on the couch, reaching down to pull on his boots and lace them up, grumbling the whole while. This place, these clothes, this whole situation was more than he wanted to deal with right now, and the sooner it was over, the better.

Air blew past Fai's lips in a sigh as he watched the larger man leave the room, and that settled it for him. There was something off, but Fai wasn't going to worry about that yet. Instead he walked over to Syaoran and placed his hands on his shoulders. "Be careful."

"Aa, I will be," Syaoran shouldered his bag and smiled when Mokona jumped on to his head.

"I want you to take this with you," The mage handed the boy a small blue gem. "If we need to contact each other this is a messenger charm. You only need to break it and it will find me where ever I am. I have one set up to find you as well."

"But if Mokona is there, Mokona can talk to Fai." The fluffy mascot hopped indignantly.

"I know, but even Mokona has a limits. If something happens, and we can’t reach each other, it will be a huge problem," Fai gave the two of them a gentle smile.

"Fai thinks of everything!"

"I only want to protect what's important," Fai ruffled the fur on Mokona's head.

Syaoran clutched the gem and carefully put it into his pocket. "Thank you Faisan."

The mage nodded his head in response as the boy turned and left. When the door closed behind him Fai sighed again as looked over his shoulder at the grumpy ninja on the couch and then walked into his room. He came out moments later pulling down the zippers over the sleeves of his jacket. The outfit was a plastic feeling material mixed with crisscrosses of nylon like substance that hugged his body from the neck down. "Ready."

"Finally." Kurogane muttered when the other man came into the room. He stood, pulling his jacket on and zipping it up. Fai seemed to go for form, but Kurogane's outfit screamed function. While it was tighter than he would have liked, the black leather pants and shirt were simple enough, as was the jacket. He wasn't going to wear anything shiny and flashy like the mage seemed to enjoy.

Walking to the door, the ninja paused long enough to regard his companion over his shoulder. "We'll take my bike. Both of us having one is unnecessary, and there's no way in hell I'm letting you drive." He shook his head and headed out the door.

"Am I such a bad driver?" Fai closed the door behind them, swiping his wrist code over the scanner and waiting to hear the click of the locking mechanism. This world had such interesting things it was a shame that nothing else seemed pleasant. 

"Well then Kurosama, do you know where to go?"

"That's why you're riding with me, so you can tell me, since you're the one with the grand plan." Kurogane muttered as he pulled up his jacket sleeve a bit to scan his wrist when his bike prompted him.

"Grand plan? No. A vague idea at best. It's impossible to have a plan when you don't have a clue what you're looking for." One long leg swung over the seat of the bike behind Kurogane as Fai's arms wrapped around his waist to brace himself for the bike’s initial kick-start.

Kurogane's eyes narrowed a little. "Oh? Well a vague idea is better than no real idea at all, isn't it? Just tell me where to go."

"Just drive to the center until we can't any more. There's going to be huge wall, you won’t miss it," Fai spoke into Kurogane's ear so he could be heard above the wind as it rushed by them.  
"There's going to be guards there and we'll have to get around them." 

Kurogane nodded just slightly, focusing on the road ahead of him as he drove. When he neared the giant wall, he slowed his speed a bit to look for a good spot, stopping the bike just out of sight of the guards and looking over his shoulder at Fai. "We should probably head the rest of the way on foot. It'd be quieter." 

"Aa," Fai hopped off the bike and continued walking for the wall. As he figured there was a guard posted every 50 yards or so. "We're not just going to be able to stroll right in."

Kurogane killed the engine and followed him. "No kidding. That much was obvious."

"And I don't know far these will get us once inside," Fai lifted up his wrist to show his code. The man that placed it said they were the highest quality fakes money could buy, and so far he didn't seem to be lying. But who cared about a fraud in the slums? Once they were beyond that wall it would be a different story.

"So, Ninja," Fai stopped and leaned against the wall. "What should we do from here?"

Kurogane scanned the area in front of them. This wasn't going to be easy, obviously, but he was never one to rely on ease. He also was never one to rely on any of this new technology they found in various worlds, and this time his dislike of such things would come in handy. 

"There may be a way in there." He pointed to what looked like a very small crevice. Certainly not big enough for the two of them to fit side by side, but big enough for each of them to push through. The only problem was the guard standing right next to it.

Cerulean eyes followed Kurogane's finger. The crevice was narrow. Fai would have no problems getting through it, but it would be an uncomfortable squeeze for someone of the other man's build. 

"Looks like a hole that was never repaired," Here was a thin crack that started at the top of the rusted wall and moved its way down until it became something large enough for a human to pass through. "That looks like our only option, but we should lay low until night fall."

"Who’s there!?" A guard yelled down. 

Instinct kicked in when Kurogane heard the voice. He quickly grabbed Fai's wrist and yanked open the closest door, pulling him into the dark room and closing the door behind him. Artificial light filtered through some cracks in the wall and ceiling, and from what Kurogane could see, it seemed to be some sort of hallway. There was another door at the end, but it was broken and half blocked by rubble from the wall. 

Hearing footsteps, the ninja pulled the other man further down the hallway, to a spot where the light didn't seem to hit, and he pushed him back against the wall, using his larger, darkly clothed body to shelter the mage, pressing him more against the wall as he turned his head enough to listen to determine if those footsteps were coming closer or moving away. 

Fai couldn't hear any footsteps, instead he heard heartbeats. Kurogane's rush for cover hadn't given the mage time to adjust to the situation and before he knew it he was pressed up against the crumbling mortar of a wall.

The mage was a secure man. He didn't worry about his strength, his looks, his intelligence, or his pride. But when Kurogane's body pressed into his it made him feel so small. A wraith of human being. A creature devoid of any capabilities to survive on its own. But over all of that, there was an all-encompassing warmth, and the sound of a heartbeat coming from a broad chest. Its rhythm slow, steady, a contrast to his own. 

He didn't know how long he kept Fai pressed against the wall, but Kurogane became increasingly aware of the other man's proximity as the sounds from outside disappeared. He could feel his breath against his neck, and it was making him a little more than uncomfortable.

When he was sure it was safe, he turned his head back to regard the blond, his eyes searching his face.

Fai tried to swallow past the lump building in his throat. His brain was frantically trying to grasp at a joke, to say something, to find a way to wiggle his way out from the larger man, but there was nothing. His hat of tricks flat lined leaving him at the world's mercy, and that wasn't a place the mage was comfortable with.

The wizard was a lot of things but he certainly wasn't stupid. He knew how the body worked; he knew why he was finding it so hard to breath and why his cheeks tingled under gaze of the other man. And the reason wasn't right. The idea of thinking this way about Kurogane wasn't foreign to Fai, it was just not an option. Unfortunately there were moments when the body and the mind couldn't agree.

There wasn't a lot of room between the two of them, but Kurogane somehow found enough to lean his face just a little closer to Fai's. He noticed the tint to his cheeks and the quickening of his breath, and in turn Kurogane's own breathing became a little more shallow. 

It was still daytime, and there was still more light seeping into the building than there would be at night, which meant they should wait it out a bit longer. That also meant Kurogane should stop pressing his body against Fai's, but he didn't. 

Fai couldn't turn his head up; he couldn't bring himself to look Kurogane in the face. He didn't want know what would greet his eyes if he did, so he closed them. He had to block everything out, but when the man shifted his body he pressed his leg between Fai's. As if the motion had forced all the air out of Fai's body, he gasped. 

Kurogane shifted again, this time moving his leg just enough to rub against Fai, his eyes still locked onto the mage's face to see his reaction. 

"Ah!" The sound escaped Fai's lips and his brows furrowed. He suddenly very aware that Kurogane knew damn well what he was doing; one does not move their leg like that to protect someone.

Slowly his eyes opened part way and looked accusingly up at the ninja. 

Kurogane's voice was low when he spoke. "You shouldn't make so much noise, or they'll find us." He pulled his leg back so it wasn't between the other man's, but he didn't move his body away at all. 

Who would have guessed that Kurogane was the coy type? And all that did was aggravate Fai further. "You want to try to play that game with me?"

"Who's playing a game? If you're loud, someone will hear you and come here. Then what was the point of hiding in the first place?" Kurogane's whisper had a bit of bite to it. "Don't be stupid."

"I'm not nearly as stupid as you're pretending to be," Fai's response was a hissed whisper that was uncommon for him but certainly not unpracticed.

Kurogane's eyes narrowed and his lips curved downward. "The fuck is that supposed to mean?"

If Fai was in his usual mood he might have had a bit more fun with this. He might have teased Kurogane a little more, or laughed this off. But he couldn't bring that side out right now. "We don't have time for this."

The mage tried to shift his body away again, but all he managed to do was press himself closer, and he bit his lip to hold in another gasp. This wasn't fair; he couldn't let his body behave this way. 

This time Kurogane didn't move. Fai was doing a pretty good job of doing that on his own. His eyes remained narrowed, but the frown lessened, and he leaned his head in just a centimeter more. 

Fai had spent a life time building up defenses. Walls that were impregnable and a facade that managed to be warm yet keep others at bay. However, Kurogane didn't seem to care about the work he put into his behavior. Every gesture and seeming whim was a stage play Fai knew inside and out. Kurogane had broken through in moments of their first meeting. And those things all started to seem so petty after a while and eventually Fai completely let him in.  
Except for in this. This one thing that all humans needed, physically, mentally, instinctively. Fai held himself in check, but Kurogane wasn't going to be happy until every last defense was conquered by him. Fai had just one more card in his deck it came out in the softest voice, and a pleading word, "Please."

At that request, Kurogane stopped moving, but he didn't pull away. At the very least, he was going to make Fai feel just as frustrated as he felt when Fai toyed with him the night before. So he remained like that, unmoving, breathing shallowly, his eyes moving away from the mage's face.

Fai pressed his cheek against the wall. So his pleading didn't work, it was worth a shot but the ninja was a little too sharp to fall for it, and Fai would be the first to admit it was an underhanded attempt. If Kurogane had honestly thought he was hurting him he would have backed away instantly, and he also knew that if Fai really wanted to get away he could. "What's going through your mind right now?"

"If you have to ask that," Kurogane whispered, still not moving, "then I'm not the one pretending to be stupid."

"At this point, who's pretending? This whole thing seems pretty stupid doesn't it?" Fai turned his head back to the taller man. Perhaps he finally allowed himself to get caught up in the moment, perhaps it was indignation, or a desire to try and put the world back into place, or just plain stupidity. Either way Fai reached his hand up, allowing the back of his fingers to smooth over Kurogane's jaw then under his chin to lead him down, guiding him to his own lips and closed the gap between them.

A moment after the contact, Kurogane pressed himself fully against Fai again, his eyes open just enough to see the mage. He shifted a bit, his hand pressing firmly against the slender man's waist, keeping him there even as he pulled his head back enough to breathe. "That seems stupid to you?"

"Stupidest thing I've ever done," Fai licked the taste of Kurogane from his lips and it sent a shiver down his neck. "Satisfied?"

"Perhaps," Kurogane's whisper was a lot less harsh now.

"Was now really a good time for this?" Fai turned his head to look down the hallway. He didn't want to get caught in this situation.

"Last night would have been a better time, but you left." The ninja frowned and stepped back completely when Fai turned his head.

The blond slumped against the wall when Kurogane backed away. His weight settled down as if he'd never used his legs before. "Last night?"

"Don't play innocent." Now it was Kurogane's turn to look away.

"I'm not playing. Not about something like this." Fai was a far cry from innocent in the area of the physical. He played his game and had been played. But he would never toy with someone he really cared for. Syaoran, Sakura, Mokona, and Kurogane; they were all he had left. "I wouldn't do that to you."

"But you did." Kurogane started walking down the hallway, back towards the door they entered from.

"What do are you talking about?" The Mage pushed his body from the wall to follow the other man. If he had played any games with him Fai would have remembered. At least he thinks he would have. 

"Last night, what happened la-" Fai’s voice faded under a clash of thunder.


	3. Conduction

Blood oozed between slender fingers as Fai gripped his shoulder, his back pressed against Kurogane’s while armed men circled them. They were dressed in an assortment of nondescript armor. None of them differed from the others. The soldier’s idea of uniformity seemed to be alive and well in this world. “I was wondering when we going to get a visit from the welcome party… though I wish they would have put a bit more thought into their gift, ne Kurosama?”

"This is why I told you to keep quiet," Kurogane snapped. He didn't even have enough time to check on the mage as the men drew their circle closer. Instead, he turned, back to the blond man as he assessed the others.

"Delgrades what is your business by the wall!" One of the men shouted, using a slur for those that came from the outer city. Fai had heard a few times already in this world and had concluded that it was a bastardization of the words downgrade or ingrates. 

Fai turned his head to the man who spoke. It was easier to gauge his prowess than it was his rank. He was a cardboard cutout of the others, but his helmet came down to a point. This was the one with the itchy trigger finger. "Shoot first ask questions later, you're Kurosama's kind of a guy."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Kurogane would have looked over his shoulder, but he was currently glaring at the men in front of him. "I'm not in the mood for this right now. If you don't want to get hurt, you should leave us alone."

"Now, now, Kurosama," Fai pressed closer to Kurogane's back. "I don't think it would be polite to let them go without a proper thank you." 

At his words Fai could feel the group tense up. Unlike Kurogane, the mage was certainly in the mood for this, he lifted two fingers in front of his lips, his eyes never left those of his shooter, even though they couldn't be seen through the helmet’s visor.

Kurogane's fists clenched, though he smirked a little. "Oh? Is that what we should do?"

In seconds the room flashed blue and erupted in gunfire. Dust, smoke, and debris filled the air, leaving only shadows against the cloudy curtain. Grunts and screams soon followed until only one shadow stood before the frames of the would be captives. Fai's fingers sparked blue as he came up to the man. "Sending children in to a fight against us is insulting." Fai whispered darkly. 

"Who, who are you?" The lone man sputtered

"Someone who doesn't like guns." Fai walked into the barrel of the gun aimed at him, feeling its chill against his chest. "Someone who won't miss..." 

Fai gently touched the body of the gun and watched the man fly back against the wall, slamming hard enough that he could hear the sound of a rib cracking. Blue lightening crackling around his body.

"That's going a little overboard isn't it?" Kurogane shook his head a little bit and watched that last man's body slump to the ground. "Now they'll really be coming for us, with all that noise." He walked over to one of the men and pulled on armor until he was able to rip some cloth. He then walked to the mage and wordlessly tied the cloth as best he could around his shoulder where he could see the blood. "Idiot."

"Maybe, but if they're here that means they're not on the wall." Fai put his hand over Kurogane's and shook his head. "Later. We have to run."

"We can run when you're not leaving a blood trail letting them know where we went." Kurogane's frown returned, and he turned to walk back to the door, checking to see if anyone else was headed their way.

"It will be fine for now, it's not that bad." Fai poked his head out of the door, his hand back against his shoulder to keep the bleeding at bay. He ran for the wall and pushed forward into the crevice. There would be other armored men running to the building they just vacated, and Fai wasn’t one to waste a diversion.

The ninja remained close behind, eyes narrowed more than usual. The crevice was a bit too small for someone his size, and he barely fit, but he pushed through.

Cables and broken wires grabbed at the mage's clothes, snagging and tearing the fabric. Rusted screw bit at his flesh with their corroded teeth, and they still had a ways to go. This breach in the city's defenses wasn't a straight walk to the other side. It twisted and turned until it got to a point where Fai had felt like they were walking around the wall instead of through, and he felt a brief moment of sympathy for the man behind him.

"Almost there," Fai whispered back to the ninja after a while. A dim light that had been tantalizingly distant was finally starting to get brighter and then it broke away to moonlight.

The larger man was silent. Each time he brushed against a particularly sharp segment, he moved enough to keep his face or his arm from being cut. Otherwise, there wasn't much he could do, and as they finally broke out of that crevice, he let out a slight hiss, his eyes scanning the area to make sure they weren't in any immediate danger.

Fai looked over his shoulder at Kurogane when he finally made it through. "Sorry that was a bit tighter of a fit than I had thought." Sure he would try to play it off like he had a plan but as he turned his head back to the center city of Telam he realized that he grossly underestimated the beast. They were surrounded by ivory towers that reached up into the sky. The plastic sheen of city was amplified the moonlight and made the night seem like the day. There were no doors or windows that he could see leaving Fai at a loss for an escape.

"Well Kurosama, what now?" They didn't have long and from the shouts that he could hear coming through the wall time was of the essence.

"You find somewhere for us to go. I'll handle that," Kurogane nodded back to the crevice they just came through. Quickly scanning the area, he noticed a panel was slightly askew, likely from whatever damage caused the crevice in the first place. Without much thought, Kurogane reached up and gripped at that plate with his artificial hand, wincing just slightly at the creaking sound it made as he slowly pulled at it, bending it into the hole. 

"That should buy us enough time."

"Kurosama's always taking the easy jobs." Fai scanned the wall of the building in front of them. There were cracks along the foundation. The cause, he assumed, was probably the same as to what caused the hole in the wall. "Hmm.."

He walked over and slid his hand across the surface moving around its circumference until he heard a familiar voice.

"Barcode scan complete. Entry permitted." A vertical line appeared and suddenly the wall split open, revealing a black room. 

"Huh," Genuinely perplexed, Fai stepped into the door way. "I think we go this way!"

Kurogane did his best not to be startled by the wall splitting, though he managed to step back a bit. Grumbling, he followed the mage. "I don't trust this..."

"No, but our odds certainly seem better in uncertainty," Fai stepped forward into the dark his body was lurched back against Kurogane when the ground started to move. Dim blue lights slowly began to descend the wall, getting steadily faster. "An elevator?"

Kurogane grunted as he caught him. He looked off to the side, but the whirring of the lights made it difficult to focus, so he looked at the floor instead.

The mage tensed up when the motion stopped and the doors opened again.

"Penthouse, welcome home Mr. Scott."

Fai waited for his eyes to adjust as he walked out into an open room. Pale wood flooring stretched out to windowed walls, sleek white counter tops sat in contrast to black furniture. There were hallways to the left and a kitchen to the right that had steel worked appliances and paneling.

Kurogane whistled a little as he stepped into the open room. Clearly no one had been here for a while, with the dead plants that littered the apartment. At least it would be safer than being outside, or at least it should be. 

After a moment, he stepped to the window and his eyes widened. "Look at this..." he pointed to the wall, which seemed to be a few miles out. "We came this far in that short amount of time..."

“Now this, I don’t trust,” At his beckoning Fai sided up to Kurogane. Sure enough, the wall was now miles away so it was merely a distant eye sore. "All this technology, and it's kept in by a wall."

The mage lifted his hand to the window and winced as pain sparked up in his shoulder. "We should check for bandages. Or something."

With all the commotion, Kurogane had forgotten about Fai's injury. "And what about the kid?" He started to walk down the hallway. "It's not like we can get back there right now." He stepped into what was clearly the bathroom, judging by the size of the tub. He began to open cabinets searching for anything he could use to patch up the mage's wound.

"He'll be okay. If he gets into trouble he can reach us," Fai followed Kurogane as he spoke. His hand went into his pocket where he thumbed over the charm.

"Who do you think he is, the person who lives here?" Not that the question mattered. It was obvious the place had been empty for a while. The only signs of life being the little machine Fai jumped over as it skittered about the floor vacuuming up the dirt they dragged in.

"You mean lived? Who knows, but it was obviously some rich guy," Kurogane found some cloth bandages and put them down, reaching for Fai's shirt. "Come here and let me get that off you so you don't hurt yourself."

Unusually compliant, Fai sat down on the edge of the large bath with his back to him. "Do as you like."

Kurogane moved silently as he removed Fai's shirt and carefully checked his wound, dabbing at it to clean it, then bandaging it, his touch gentle as he moved the injured man's arm just enough to get the bandage wrapped.

"So, are we not going to talk about it?" Fai grabbed Kurogane's hand before he pulled it away keeping it at his shoulder.

"Talk about what?" Kurogane mumbled. "You shouldn't move too much or you might hurt yourself."

"There aren't any guns here that will interrupt us, Kurosama." Fai turned his head up. 

"Well, I have nothing to talk about."

"No? I suppose not." Fai let Kurogane’s hand go and faced the wall. "Grinding against me like an desperate adolescent is nothing at all then?"

"I didn't grind against you." Kurogane barked, turning his head to the side and moving to step away from him.

"I certainly taught you how to dodge questions didn't I? Why can't you just be honest with me?" Fai turned around and stood up. A short syllable of a laugh huffed out of Fai's lips. "Never thought I would see the day were Kurosama was scared of something."

"Scared? Don't be stupid," He snapped. "It's your fault anyway."

"So you've said. But why?"

"Like you have no clue."

"I haven't. Not a one."

"So you mean to tell me that you have no idea what you do, and that it's all an accident? I don't believe that for a second. You love driving me mad, and now you're just being elusive."

Those eyes became wide and bewildered. "What I do?" Fai ran through his mental list of daily Kurogane torments and he had to admit that he had been particularly well behaved as of late. 

"Kurosama, you know me better than anyone. Look at me and tell me if you think I'm lying to you."

Kurogane kept his head turned to the side and avoided his gaze. "If you can't remember, then I'm not telling you." He stood.

"You're scared."

"I'm not."

"You are."

"If I said I'm not, I'm not." Kurogane started to walk out of the room.

"Why can't you believe me then?" Fai lowered his head as the other man walked away. "Whatever I did to upset you like this, I'm sorry."

With a sigh, Kurogane stopped in the doorway, but he kept his back to him. "You can't apologize for something you don't even know you did. Forget it. It's clearly nothing."

"Then tell me what I did... you would get so mad at me for playing these stupid games with you. For not telling you when something bothered me. For not letting you in. You're not a petty person and you’re not the type to throw things back at people. So, what's wrong with you?" The mage took one little step forward.

"You." Kurogane grumbled and turned to look at him. "You're what's wrong with me. And if I'm being evasive it's because you're just going to take it the wrong way if I say it as bluntly as that. Are you happy now?"

"Me?" Fai's brows creased. "B..because I kissed you? I, thought that was what you wanted."

"How short-sighted are you? Do you think I'd suddenly develop this problem just from what you did today? And this is exactly what I was talking about. This is why I didn't say it before."

A long silence stretched out between them before Fai took a few more steps forward, his hand lifting to Kurogane's cheek before his eyes followed.

"If I'm the problem, then let me fix it." The mage’s last defense crumbled down. Seeing Kurogane like this made Fai realize it was stupid to have one up against him in the first place.

"Let you fix it? So you can fuck with me like you do every time? No." Kurogane shook his head, but he didn't move away from him. "So you can knock me down time and time again?"

“Does Kurosama really think I’m that cruel? When it comes to something this important?” Fai’s fingers graced over a well-defined jaw.

"No. I don't." Kurogane shook his head and looked at him. "And you don't even know what you did. So how can you apologize for it, or fix it?"

Fai stepped in a little closer. "You can tell me where to start. "

"Start by being a little more aware of what you're doing..." The ninja's voice dropped a little. "And don't tease me..."

"What do I do?" His hand opened to cup Kurogane's cheek and pull him down. "Make me aware."

"You felt it before, didn't you? What you do." Kurogane moved as Fai pulled him. "And last night, when you touched me, it happened, but you pulled away, and I got mad at you because you were just completely unaware. It frustrates the hell out of me that you have no idea how I've been looking at you."

The color flushed to Fai's cheeks hearing those words in Kurogane's voice was almost more than what the mage could handle. He didn't think the ninja could talk like that. He underestimated Kurogane’s ability to understand the softer side of emotions. When things got a weird earlier it had felt more like an punishment than a confession and now he knew why. "I didn't know. I wasn't trying to mess with you."

"Why have you been looking at me?" He had to ask, he didn't know why, but he had to play just one more game, he wanted to hear Kurogane say what Fai had been fighting this whole time. If someone like Kurogane acknowledged it, then it was okay, right? 

"Why?" Kurogane looked at Fai, slightly taken back by that question. "Twice I've prevented you from leaving us. I endured you purposely pushing me away. I gave up this arm for you." He glanced at his own shoulder before looking back at the mage. "For years we've been together. Our fates have become intertwined, and you are asking me why?"

"Never thought I'd hear you talk about fate. Don't you always ‘strike out on your own, you're future is yours to decide?’ And now you're intertwined with me..." Fai's eyes danced between Kurogane's, then traversed over his face. 

"How, how intertwined do you want to be?" Fai was close enough to now to feel the ninja's breath against his lips making his own quicken.

"Aren't those decisions I made?" Kurogane's voice was a mere whisper as he closed the gap a little more, but not coming into contact with him just yet. "Push me away, or you won't be able to separate yourself from me."

"Too late for that."

"Is that so?" The ninja looked down at the smaller man before he finally made contact, crushing Fai's lips with his own.

"Mm!" The blond whimpered into his mouth. This felt different than before. This was hotter and needier than the one in the building. Fai actually felt his knees quiver. When the kiss broke all of Fai's wit left him and he could only manage to breath out, "Kurosama."

Without a word, Kurogane pulled back when the kiss broke and took Fai's hand, leading him out of the bathroom and towards the bedroom.

Fai allowed himself to be lead down the hallway. There was very little reason or need to fight against this now. That is to say, there was very little else in his head except the lingering feel of the ninja's lips against his own.

As soon as he pulled the mage through the doorway to the bedroom, Kurogane pulled him close again and crushed his lips with another kiss.

"Kuro-mmph!" The blond pressed his lips back against the larger man's, his hands pushing into his hair as his mouth opened to him.

Kurogane only pulled away when it was time to breathe, his eyes locked on the man in front of him. "Hm?"

"Nmm?" Those cerulean eyes were dazed when they looked back up at Kurogane. One slender hand lifted up to the other man’s chest. "You're wearing too much, don't you think? Kurosama can see me, so he should let me see Kurosama."

"Is that how it works?" Kurogane stepped back a bit and yanked his shirt off without ceremony. "Satisfied?"

“Yes, well, traditionally sex is something people do when they’re naked. Unless Kurosama prefers something kinkier.” 

Fai couldn't help it and a little laugh escaped him as the ninja’s shirt was brutishly tossed aside. "You know you could try and act like I wasn't a sure thing. Kurosama doesn't know how to seduce does he?” He stepped back and took a moment to appreciate the view. 

“However,” Every movement that was learned after years of training and discipline, ever muscle that was gained by the swinging of a sword, showed through in the body before him. Fai’s hand slid up against Kurogane’s chest, moving along the dips and curves to his shoulders allowing the feeling to sear his own nerves. The mage closed his eyes for moment giving his body permission to enjoy it. “This isn’t without its charm.”

"Never had to." Kurogane cupped Fai's cheek in his hand and brushed his thumb over the mage's lower lip. "You telling me I should fumble around?" He smirked a little. "Or would you rather do the fumbling?"

"I wouldn't expect you to fumble anything." His tongue flicked out to taste at Kurogane's thumb then slowly take it between his lips.

"Then what do you expect me to do?" The ninja's eyes focused on the mage's mouth.

"Haven't you been watching me?" Fai released his thumb but turned his head in Kurogane’s hand and tasted the salt of his palm. "Surely it hasn't been just Kurosama eyes that have wanted to wander over me, is it?"

"Should I tell you?" Kurogane grinned just slightly, leaning in as if he were going to kiss Fai again, but stopping just short of the contact.

"Would I ask if I didn't want to know?"

"Hm? All right." Kurogane whispered. "But only if I get something in return."

Fai's arms wrapped around Kurogane's neck as he pulled him close enough so they're lips touched. "Anything."

Instead of saying anything, Kurogane took Fai's mouth in a heated kiss, his own arms wrapping around him and pulling him as close against his chest as he could.

"Nn!" Fai's hands pushed and pulled in the man's hair as he moaned into his mouth. There was little grace or tenderness in Kurogane's technique. Fai welcomed the feel of it. Former lovers would often mistake Fai's figure as that of someone who needed a delicate touch. But Fai was a man too, and he made that obvious as he pressed his hips up to Kurogane's leg.

Kurogane took that cue to push Fai back towards the bed, grunting a little into the kiss as he made sure each movement made him rub against Fai.

The mage fell back on the bed when his legs hit the edge his gasp of surprise hiding the faint whimper when his shoulder hit first.

Kurogane's brows furrowed. For a moment, he had forgotten that Fai was injured, but the whimper brought that knowledge back. "Shit. Sorry." He leaned down to make sure the mage's wound didn't reopen, and when he was sure it was okay, he sighed. "We can't do this when you're hurt."

"We got a little too caught up..." Carefully Fai sat up, the flush still on his cheek, his hair unbound and disheveled. "Of all the times I wish I knew how to heal."

"Well, that'll teach you not to get hurt again." Kurogane stood and ran his hand over his face, heading back to the doorway. "You should rest."

"You're not going to stay with me?"

"If I do, I'll only make your injury worse."

The blond smirked. "That irresistible?"

"If that's how you want to see it, sure." Kurogane grunted and left the room.

Fai stared back at the closed door until he saw the crack of light under it go out. It was a good thing at least one of them had restraint. If the roles were reversed the mage highly doubted he would be able to back away. He wasn’t raised with the self-control of the ninja. If he wanted something he most often times got it. Food, booze, women, or men (depending on what was more appealing at the time) were readily available to him whenever he desired. It was just that he rarely desired for much in his younger days. He did, however, still remember the first time someone reminded him he was man. 

She was an older woman, a consort of Ashura at the time. Her penchant for red made her stand out within the confines of the ice world, and everything about her spoke of danger and flame. Fai, barely a man at the time, stood little chance against her.

“Sex, is a nourishment the body needs, just like food or water.” She had told him once as he lay in the aftermath. “There’s nothing wrong with giving into the release, even for someone as cold as you, Fai.” 

She had vanished soon after; one of the early victims of Ashura’s falling. 

He shook his head and pushed himself up from the king size pillow top. It was dangerous for him to think of the past. It always lead his down a darker path and while he was healing he was wise enough to know that it takes just one wrong move to pull open a wound again. 

He made his way over to the window, his arms holding themselves as he stared out over the pristine city. It was so pure it reminded him of the mornings in Ceres. The way the snow would capture every facet of light.

“Wha?” Fai squinted. Something was moving, and fast. A shadow of black hopped through the streets and then just stopped before their building. Fai backed away from the glass, feeling it catch his gaze. As if it took that as an invitation the mage felt something upon him. Heavy and viscous like a tar holding him down, wide eyes looked to the door but before he even a gasp could leave his lips the ooze covered and then filled his mouth rendering him silent.


	4. Odds Ratio

Kurogane sat on the couch, arms over his knees and head bowed. There was a half-empty glass of booze on the table. He had most of the bottle over the course of the night, trying to accomplish two things. The first was to forget that he had, in fact, opened himself up to Fai and let him know how he was feeling. It was something he didn't intend to do, but the mage just kept pushing and pushing until he cracked. The second was to enable him to sleep. 

Neither worked. The lust that he felt was calling him to the bedroom, but he wouldn't allow himself to succumb to it. Fai was injured. It was wrong. He had to be the responsible one. But man that sucked.

So here he was, sitting on the couch, staring at the floor and watching the shadows creep across it as light filtered in. Although the sky was clearer here, and it was certainly a lot easier to breathe the air, Kurogane still found it to be too heavy and unsettling. Perhaps it was his inability to sleep the night before. The irony of that wasn't lost on him: normally he didn't sleep well because Fai had a death grip on him. Last night he didn't sleep at all because the mage was in another room.

It wouldn't be the first time, and he was sure it wouldn't be the last, but for now, all Kurogane could do was focus on remaining calm as he waited for the other man to wake up.

The sunlight left a streak over Fai’s face and burned its way into his eyelids, forcing the mage to get up. He pushed his hands against the floor feeling every tendon and muscle scream in defiance. He fell against the carpet, panting softly. 

"Fuck." He swore under his breath before he tried again. Pain was relative, and he had experienced far worse than this. He had survived pains that would make this feel like little more than a cramp. But damn it cramps hurt a lot at the time!

Fai inhaled deeply and pushed up again, this time getting all the way to his feet. He hesitated, got his bearings, and then convinced his body to move to the door where he adjusted his clothing and ran a hand through his hair. Kurogane was going to be on the other side of that door, and he had to prepare himself to do something he hadn't done in years.

He stepped out and looked at the larger man, the smile on his face spreading from ear to ear. "Good morning Kurosama!" He walked past him and placed a light kiss to the top of his head, his steps were like the mage was walking on air and he breezed into the kitchen. "Were you able to find anything for food? I'd imagine if there was anything, it's probably all bad by now." 

Kurogane didn't lift his head right away, nor did he do anything beyond grunt an answer to the mage. Once he collected his thoughts, he lifted his head and watched him. He may not have slept, but he wasn't an idiot. Did Fai really think he wouldn't notice? But he didn't want to confront him just yet. Right now, he watched and waited to see if Fai would come clean on his own. If not, well, then Kurogane would confront him about it.

Did Fai think he could get away with it? No. He knew Kurogane would see through him the second he stepped out into the living room, but he didn't need to hide anything he just needed time to stall. "Is that a no then." He stepped back and looked through the glass on the cupboards. His finger tapped his chin. There was little in there that he trusted to be safe for consumption.

"I guess we're going to go out then. Though I don't know what a city like this has to offer."

"We're not going anywhere." Kurogane snapped. His eyes narrowed and he frowned. "Are you trying to piss me off? Or maybe you're planning on distancing yourself from me again after last night?" He knew damn well that wasn't what Fai was doing, but the point needed to be made. Kurogane had voiced his displeasure at Fai's lies several times before, so Fai already knew better. So whatever this was, it was done purposefully, and it was angering him more.

"Sorry Kurosama. I can't ever fool you can I?" It was a good thing Fai had his back to Kurogane because the expression on his face betrayed his voice. "I didn't want to worry you, but I think we might have done a bit too much last night." He placed his hand on his shoulder. "I didn't want you to do something like blame yourself."

"I slept wrong last night without my giant teddy bear! So that probably helped make it worse too. I'll take it easy today." Fai forced himself to turn around; the smile on his lips was warm and sweet. "I promise. And I'll start by not getting shot!"

Kurogane sank back into the couch, watching Fai's expression as he turned around. "Is that it? Then there was no reason to try to fool me was there?" He ran a hand over his face and tilted his head back over the back of the couch, looking up at the ceiling. "Shouldn't I blame myself then? You hurt because of what I did, but then it's worse cause I left?" He shook his head and straightened up. "You better take it easy, or I'll kick your ass." 

The ninja stood, stretching his arms above his head before regarding the mage again. "So, we have to leave to get something to eat hm? We should at least see if there's anything here one of us can fit into."

Fai silently watched him for a moment. He was so cute when he got a bit pouty and Fai couldn't help himself. "I'm not complaining Kurosama. You were so sexy last night and forceful!" His hand came to his forehead in a mock swoon. "I never thought I would be dragged to the bed room by the likes of you.” His smirk grew. "If I take it easy do you promise to reward me?"

"Well, I won't kick your ass at the very least." Kurogane shook his head and stretched a little again as he started to walk to the other room. "Don't mock me, though, or I'll kick your ass anyway." He muttered, stopping in the bedroom and rummaging through drawers to see if there was anything that would fit either of them.

"That's not much of a reward, Kurosama." Fai waved his hand dismissively as he stood at the bedroom door. He didn't focus on anything in particular as his hands held his elbows.

"Oh? Not making me angry enough to kick your ass isn't good enough for you?" Kurogane tossed him a shirt. "Here. This looks like it will fit you."

The mage caught the shirt as he threw it at him, the sudden movement shot waves of ice through his body. A bitter numbing of every muscle he used in the motion and yet the shirt was caught without more than a flinch. And he held it out in front of him. It was cut lose in the chest and tighter around the waist. And wasn’t a shirt.

"Women's clothes?" One eyebrow quirked up. "At least the fabric is better... actual cloth is an improvement." Though he couldn't say he felt comfortable wearing the discarded clothing of Mr. Scott's woman, but beggars couldn't be choosers.

"Yeah, well the shoulder will be looser on that than on anything else in here." Kurogane muttered as he shrugged off his own shirt and pulled on another. "And it's better than that tight crap, isn't it?" He continued to rummage before grabbing some pants as well.

Fai couldn't argue that and simply nodded his head as he stepped into the bathroom to change clothes.

After a soothing shower, he was thankful for the ease that these clothes came on verses the jaws of life needed on the outfits he was accustomed to from this world.

The black dress zippered down the front with open arms that joined to bell sleeves by leather straps. It went down to the floor and had one slit all the way up the side which left little for the imagination. The back was cut out to a diamond shape of pure white skin. Fai personally didn't mind that, it allowed for flexibility and movement, but he had to do something about his exposed legs. He pulled on a pair of black leggings followed by shorts that came down to mid-thigh. 

He noticed there was a tab of some sort sown into the sleeve, and never one to let curiosity go unbidden he clicked it. In seconds the dress shrunk up to his ankles, the hips became more narrow and the chest was fitted. "Memory fabric... huh.."

He stepped out into the hallway just as the sleeves rolled up from the bell winged shape to cling more securely to his arms. "I guess this will work."

"You take too long." Kurogane grunted from his place on the couch, but he didn't turn his head to look in the mage's direction. He yawned a little and finished lacing up his boots, having tucked his newer pants into them for ease.

"You're the one who gave me women's clothes. It's complicated." Fai slipped his legs into his calf high boots before taking a band off the counter to tie his hair back.

"I gave you clothes that would fit you with your injury." The ninja retorted, but blinked when he looked at him. "And it definitely wasn't that tight when I threw it to you..."

"It did this on its own. It seems to be a matter of one size fits all." The mage rotated one arm slowly. "Besides, it’s not that tight, I can move around pretty well, and it keeps the bandages in place." The material was light like a mesh but solid like armor, with the look and flow like simple cloth. He wouldn't complain.

"If you say so." Kurogane shook his head. "Well, let's go find somewhere to get food, so you can take care of yourself and heal better."

"That eager to get me into the sack?" Why couldn't Fai resist?

"What? No. Are you stupid? Don't make me a pervert like you are."

Fai walked toward the door and shook his head before he turned around. "And what makes me a pervert?"

"Making assumptions. If you think I'm that eager, isn't that projection?" Kurogane followed him.

"Projection, huh?" Where did Kurogane pull a concept like that from? Perhaps the mage was starting to rub off on him. "If I was projecting myself we probably wouldn't be leaving this apartment." Fai smirked as he turned around, waving his arm in front of the door and stepping into the dark elevator.

After stepping in behind him, Kurogane grunted. "Like I would let you do anything that would hurt you?"

"I know."

"Do you?"

"Welcome, Mr. Scott where would you like to go?" Interrupted the electronic guide

"Good morning Robot. I would like to go to a place my companion and I can get breakfast."

"Very well." The Elevator started to move again and Fai place his attention back on Kurogane.

"Yes, I do know that you would never allow me to do anything that would hurt me. You'd even take it so far as to hurt yourself in the process. You've made that rather blatant." Fai face darkened slightly, showing only glimpses as the blue motion lights flashed over them.

"Well, then stop doing it, and it won't happen." Kurogane's voice was a bit harsh, but he did not turn to look at the mage. When the platform stopped and the doors opened, he had to lift a hand to shield his eyes as bright light poured in.

The elevator had taken them to some sort of open court. There were people everywhere, all of whom were dressed similarly to the two of them. Black shapes moving around a sterile white courtyard. The ninja's eyes narrowed. Something didn't feel right, and he instinctively pushed Fai behind him, stepping out into the light before he did, so at the very least, any attack would hit him before it hit the mage.

Although none came, he didn't relax. There were too many potential enemies here. How could he trust any of these people? Kurogane shook his head and took one of Fai's pulling him along behind him to somewhere a little less exposed than where they were dropped off.

Fai winced when Kurogane pushed him aside, sometimes the ninja didn't know his own strength, and sometimes the mage overestimated his own pain tolerance. He was thankful that the man couldn't see the expression on his face as he pulled him through that open expanse of the city. Even more thankful that he was able to take a moment to breathe when they got to a small diner at the edge of it. "Here, at least it smells like food."

Kurogane let go of him once they stopped, and when he looked at him, he frowned a little. "Too many people were looking at you." He muttered before pushing his way into the diner and to the booth the waitress directed them to.

"Looking at me?" Fai looked down at himself then around at everyone in the diner. "Do I look funny?"

"Funny? No." The ninja shook his head and grunted out an order of the simplest looking thing on the menu. He begrudgingly ordered coffee, sitting back in the booth and looking at one patron who was staring a little too much at Fai.

There were times when even Fai had moments of stark innocence. Where the clueless expression wasn't an act or a way to aggravate the larger man. "What so special about me?"

Everyone in this world looked normal. Tall, short, fat, skinny, blond, brunette, people came in all sorts around here. Even that gruffer man in the corner of the diner looked to be perfectly averagely normal. He wasn't sure how he stood apart from them to garner extra attention but whatever it was it had Kurogane on edge.

He ordered a double of what Kurogane got and studied the Ninja for a while before he just shook his head. "I'll contact Syaorankun today."

"I think they're just trying to figure out if you're a guy or a girl." Kurogane muttered a bit when the coffee came, since it smelled unpleasant. "And do that soon because if I were the kid, I would be hating myself right now if I was stuck alone with the manjuu for that long." 

He looked again at the patrons in the diner, though after a moment, he turned his attention out the little window, watching people walk by without any cares in the world. "Idiots..."

"Well how flattering, but that's because Kurosama gave me a dress to wear." Fai smirked and sat back in his chair, the aloof demeanor anything but feminine. "They're not idiots, they're just going through their lives living one day as it comes. The majority of them probably don't know a thing about the world beyond the wall." Fai sipped at his coffee and made a quick face before adding more sugar to it.

"They're too complacent." Kurogane drank all of his coffee quickly, his lips twitching a little at the horrible taste, but he pushed it aside and shook his head when the waitress asked if he wanted a refill. "It's too convenient here. Everything about this place smells like nothing."

Fai's eyes followed Kurogane's gaze. This city square was nothing like the tall white seamless pillars they had just come from. The life here was comforting and warm. There were trees and grass, children laughing and chasing pets. The greenery was all the more eye catching in the outer sea of white, but it was the closest thing Fai had seen to normal since they arrived here. 

"Complacency is comfort. These people don't have to fight for anything, they don't care about what's going on in each other’s lives, and they just move forward each day into the next." Fai was sure this world had its murderers, rapists, and thieves. There was no such thing as a utopia, and Fai's eyes settled on one man in particular. 

The man was middle aged, sitting on a bench across from the diner's window, with a woman who's hand was on his thigh, however when his eyes met Fai's he could see everything flash across his face. "These are just average people. Wanting the things we all want."

"Average people aren't a hundred percent satisfied with everything." Kurogane's fingers drummed against the coffee mug. He glanced at those outside, and he frowned. "And average people aren't this sterile."

"There's nothing sterile about the people in this city." Fai turned his head back to the ninja. "I get the feeling though that this is going to be a dead end, just like the last world. If Syaoran's parents existed here, one of us would have felt something... and I think the boy is aware of that as well." He took another long drink of his sugar slurry.

"So what we need to do is figure out why we're still here... there has to be a purpose..."

"If you say so." Kurogane muttered and looked down at the table. He shifted just slightly in the booth. "I've never been good at figuring that stuff out. The kid probably did it already. He can focus a whole hell of a lot better when you're not around."

The corner of Fai's mouth quirked up. "Am I a distraction?"

"Well, with the way you act with the manjuu? No one could focus with all that crap going on."

"Is that his problem, or is it the fact that you can't ignore me?" Fai leaned back in his chair as the food came, but kept their eyes locked.

"I can ignore you just fine." Kurogane looked right back at him. "You know damn well I can."

"I wonder." Fai poked at the food a little. He had to admit that he still wasn't hungry. His body felt like it would reject anything he tried to put inside it, but he put on the show and forced down every bite until he was finished.

Kurogane noticed, but if Fai didn't want to talk about it, he wasn't going to bring it up yet. He did, however, watch the mage's face to make sure he didn't suddenly feel nauseous or anything. He also tried to make it look like he wasn't overly concerned, since he already expressed his worries to his partner earlier. Instead, he just ate his food in silence.

Fai was okay with the silence, he needed just a little longer to think, and they sat in that silence until the bill was placed down on the table. It was a simple black tab, no wider than a book mark with a place to scan the barcode. As Kurogane reached across to pay Fai grabbed his wrist, covering the code with his hand and shook his head.

"Tch..." Kurogane looked at the mage. "What? You want to pay that badly?" This was more than that, though. There was no reason for Fai to grab so fiercely if he simply wanted to pay. After yanking his arm out of the mage's grip and rubbing his reddening wrist, the ninja scowled at the other man. "The fuck. Next time just say so."  
"Ah, sorry..." Fai swiped his arm over the scanner and sighed. There was little he could say for himself at this point. Yes he could walk fine and act fine, but when it came to Kurogane he was hopeless. "Kurosama, you should avoid using your scanner."

"Why?" Kurogane's frown only deepened. "You lied to me this morning, didn't you?"

"I figured it would be obvious, but Kurosama doesn't pry." He ran his hand up into his hair in a motion that awkward coming from the mage. It was a nervous that was out of place with that slender hand.

"After you left last night, something came into the room.”

"What? And you hid this from me?"

"I wasn't sure what happened, and I'm still not. I can't even explain it. But it wasn't after me, and it seemed upset with me when I wasn't what it wanted. That's all I know, and this morning I woke up on the floor..."

Kurogane sat back and ran his hand over his face. He went quiet again, but the frown never left. After a few minutes, he shook his head. "We're leaving."

"Leaving? Where are we going? We don't have any information yet."

"Anywhere but here. If weird shit is happening to you, and you're getting hurt, we shouldn't stay here." Kurogane stood.

"They're going to have people manning the wall, so we can't get back to Syaorankun yet."

"Perhaps I can help." 

Fai turned toward the voice."Seishirou..."

"I've been listening to you two for a while now, and while I admit it's been fun, it's like you flounder about without a princess to guide you. You didn't even realize I was near you."

The ninja's head whipped to the side and his fists clenched. "Are you kidding me?"

"Though I can't say I blame you. You were always bad at focusing on multiple things when someone around you is in pain or danger." Seishirou smirked at Kurogane's obvious annoyance. "And as much as I would enjoy teasing you, there are more pressing matters at hand, here."

Fai took a step back toward the ninja. This man was dangerous. It didn't matter what face he put forward, this man was the type that only had his one goal in mind and anything else was just in the way. They just seemed to always have the misfortune of crossing his path. 

"It seems we're destined to keep meeting each other Seishirousan."

"Yes well, it would seem that our strings keep interweaving with each other even more than the two people I actually desire to meet. Though I do admit I am growing to be fonder of these interludes." There was a touch of a flirt on his voice as he cast his eyes from Fai to Kurogane. 

"Follow me. I'll get you some place safe."

Kurogane's eyes narrowed at Seishirou and he snarled a bit. "Well I sure as hell ain't fond of them." 

"Now now. Don't be rude." Seishirou's smirk widened. "Here I am offering up my help, and you're already chomping at the bit to take my head off." He turned his gaze back to Fai. "You really should train your guard dog a little better. I'm no threat to you right now."

"All that aside," Fai raised his hand up to air in front Kurogane's chest. "I don't think we really have a choice right now. We need a place we can gather our thoughts so yes, Seishirou, thank you for your hospitality."

"I'm glad to see that one of you still has common graces. Follow me, then." The turned from them and head out toward the street before he stopped at same lift the two of them came out of earlier. 

"Come on Kurosama we don't have many choices."

Kurogane's anger only increased as he was forced to follow. His fists clenched just slightly, and he grumbled to himself. 

"What a noisy pooch. Good thing his master is much more refined." Seishirou made a show of looking Fai over. "And much nicer to look at."

What was with the people around him suddenly? Fai was starting to feel like had somehow taken a pheromone bath, and what didn't help was the jerk the elevator made when it started to move. It managed to knock Fai off his footing and push him into the outstretched arm of the other man, like he had planned it. Though Fai wasn’t obtuse enough to think that this had anything to do with ‘him’.

"Careful. These things are pretty old so sometimes they're take off is a bit of a jolt." Seshirou put Fai up right.

Kurogane remained steady, as expected, but he averted his gaze from the other two and frowned.

When Fai's feet steadied themselves it was all he could do to keep from glowering at the other man. "Yes, thank you. I'll do better to brace myself next time." There was a bite to his words. The sickeningly polite way these two always spoke to each other. There was no doubt that somewhere deep down inside Fai wanted to properly go toe to toe with this man. It would certainly bring him down a peg.

"What has you willing to work with us?"

"I owe someone a debt and I plan to see it through. Your boy, the other Syaoran... he's been taken to the central tower."


	5. Resonance

"The central tower?" Fai looked up at the taller man. "You saw him? Syaorankun. You actually saw him?"

"It's not really in my interest to start lying to you two." Seishirou leaned back against the wall. The passing lights of the elevator reflected off the man's glasses making his eye dead paler. "He was being carried in by a few of Jarcus' men."

"Was he okay? Why was he being carried?" the mage asked.

"I didn't have time to inspect him. But yes to ease your mind. I did see him," It was never a question of IF Seishirou saw the boy. Fai knew this man wasn’t the type to be mistaken." And he appeared to be in one piece, for now."

"For now?" Fai lifted one eyebrow.

"For now. Yes. Jarcus takes an interests in new toys all the time, and while he's interested, there's no need to worry."

"No need to worry, except that he's been taken and they're doing who knows what to him," Kurogane spat. "And that annoying manjuu...did you see it with the kid?" He crossed his arms and leveled his gaze on Seishirou.

A half smile curled his lips as Seishirou turned toward Kurogane, "I sensed a presence with him. It was familiar." The doors abruptly slid open. "Ah! Home sweet home."

The slender man crossed the threshold into a room that was more sterile and oddly more ominous than their last home. The color scheme was the same. Blacks, whites, and steel filled the room, as if to make sure there wouldn’t be a perception of warmth. It felt more like Fai was about to get prepped for surgery than being welcomed into someone's home.

"Sensing and seeing ain't the same thing," Kurogane muttered under his breath as he followed the other two into the room. His eyes narrowed a bit as he took in the surroundings, and he moved that much closer to Fai.

"Believe what you want. I am not here to help you, only inform you. I've done my part. Please use the facilities however you see fit."

"You're leaving?" Fai looked between the two of them.

"Yes," Seishirou cleaned his glasses with the edge of his shirt. "I am needed elsewhere this evening. You may do as you like this place. I will see you tomorrow and will answer any questions you may have."

"Wait! What about Syaorankun!? We can't leave him,” The mage took a step toward Seishirou.

"You needn't worry about him. As I said he is far more interesting to Jarcus alive than dead."

"Who is this Jarcus person? You’ve barely said a word about him."

"You haven't noticed? My, my, what have you two been focused on since you got here?" Seishirou walked over to one of the windows and waved his hand over it, and as if understanding his whim the tint brightened. "Any second now."

"I don't. . ." Fai's eyes widened. As if a clock had just struck noon he watched it come to life. What he saw before him was a testament to ego and yet a marvel to behold. In the side of every building were faint indentations that shadowed over when the sun came to certain point in the sky. So at noon every day deep bold black letters would print out the name 'JARCUS TELAM.'

Kurogane took it all in, the frown becoming more of a permanent fixture on his face. He didn't like all the uncertainty. He watched Seishirou through the whole ordeal, and he wasn't sure if it was better knowing the other man knew something or worse. "So that's it, then? We just sit tight until you come back tomorrow?"

"What else are you going to do? I have business to attend to, and you, especially you, are like fish out of water." He smirked at Kurogane. "Don't question hospitality when it's presented to you." He stepped up to Fai and leaned down to see into those eyes. "And this one needs rest. His body has been quivering all day. How you can resist it I couldn't know." Then he lowered his lips to Fai’s ear and whispered, "Virgins are the cutest aren't they?"

The blond jumped back, his hand over his ear and a flush on his face from cheek to cheek.

"Hahaha! I really did miss you two." Seishirou walked back to the elevator and waved with just his fingers. "Be good." With that the doors shut and he was gone. All Fai could do was stare after him as his eyes started to narrow.

"If you like his attention so much, you should follow him." Kurogane snapped, looking at anything and everything else in the room as long as it meant he didn't have to look at the mage. It was obvious that he didn't like what Seishirou said, but he disliked what just transpired even more, and the anger only added to his bad mood.

"Huh?" Fai turned his head back to Kurogane, the flush still coloring his cheeks. "What are you talking about?" He turned his head to the side to clear it for a second. "I-I'm going to go shower. There's no point in standing around here,” He brushed past Kurogane.

The ninja made no move to stop him. He only turned his head sharply to again avoid looking at the other man. "Whatever. Enjoy your shower."

"Yeah." Fai hurried along and closed the door behind him before leaning his back against it. He wouldn't say this about too many people, but Fai really hated that man. There were so few people that were still alive that knew how to get under the mage's skin. Fai couldn't blame Kurogane for getting upset. It was probably just as annoying to see as it was to experience. But the part that got Fai the most was the one thing the ninja would never see. Fai was the sliver used to get under Kurogane's skin. Seishirou didn't care one bit about Fai's wellbeing outside of how the mage could be used as a prop to aggravate the ninja.

"Jerk." Fai sighed under his breath as he readied his shower. The stream starting the moment he walked in.

Still in the main room, Kurogane waited until he heard the water running to move from the spot he seemed to be stuck in. He made his way to the couch and sat, leaning back a bit and looking up at the ceiling. He didn't want to be here. If anything, he should have been out looking for a way to get Syaoran back. But where to start? What could he possibly do in a world such as this? Seishirou wasn't wrong when he said Kurogane was a fish out of water, though the ninja would sooner eat his own hand than admit any shortcomings.

"Ahem," Fai coughed into his hand to break into the bigger man's thoughts. He had been done and standing in the hallway for a while now, his hair still dripping into the borrowed robe. "It's open if you need to use it."

Kurogane made no move to lift his head from the back of the couch let alone get up. "I'm not dirty." He quipped.

"Suit yourself. But you don't know when the next time will be that we'll have this luxury. I would take any chance I could." Fai walked forward, the sunlight at his back. He knew that expression on the Ninja’s face all too well. "We can't help Syaorankun, if we don't know what we're up against.”

"No shit." Kurogane practically jumped off the couch and stalked towards the bathroom, muttering to himself more than anything. He didn't even wince as he slammed the door behind himself.

A long drawn out sigh followed the wince as the sound of the door filled the apartment. "He's is usual chipper self." Fai sat down on the couch, and slid to the side to lay his head on the arm. The heat of the shower certainly helped his aching bones and the wound to his shoulder was already covered with fresh pink flesh. It was one of the benefits left over from his vampire days.

“Hnh,” He hadn’t thought about that in a while. Those days were long over but Fai could still remember them as if they were no more than week ago. That was their group at its lowest: scattered, hurt, scared, and confused. Fei Wong almost won then, and he would have if Kurogane hadn't stopped him from shoving that blade into his stomach.

Kurogane didn't make a sound when he came out of the bathroom. His hair wasn't even the slightest bit wet, as he had only washed up enough to retort in case the mage mentioned not being able to wash up again. The rest of the time he just sat in the bathroom in silence, which continued as he walked through the room, past the couch and into the kitchen.

The mage shifted on the couch, an arm moving over his eyes. "Making dinner?"

Kurogane looked through the cabinets and muttered under his breath.

"Hmm?"

"It's harder to ignore you when you talk to me."

Fai carefully sat up. "And why are you ignoring me?"

"Because you agitate me" Kurogane spoke calmly in spite of the loud noises he was making rummaging through each cabinet. At one point, a pan hit the floor, but he ignored it and the loud clang it made in favor of searching for something sealed. If he planned on eating or drinking anything in this place, it sure as hell wasn't going to be something that Seishirou already opened. He didn't trust the man enough to be comfortable staying here, so trusting the food was out of the question.

"I agitate you? That's nothing new." Fai pushed himself up from the couch and watched as Kurogane fumbled through the kitchen. "Hey, hey, settle down." He reached down and picked up the pan and put it on the counter. "This isn't our place, we shouldn't go throwing everything about." Fai calmly lifted his hand to Kurogane's cheek.

"I didn't throw it. I dropped it. But what do you care?" Kurogane closed the last cabinet, the motion causing him to pull slightly away from Fai's hand.

"Why wouldn't I care?" Fai's brows furrowed a little and he cocked his head to the side. "Did he get to you that badly?"

"Me? Oh no. Not me. You maybe, but certainly not me."

"Y-you're jealous?" The mage was torn now. He didn't know if this was adorable, or if he should get pissed because Kurogane thought there was something to be jealous about.

"Of what?" Kurogane looked at him, eyes hard.

"I don't know. You tell me," Fai stepped in between Kurogane and the cabinet. "Was it because he was close to me? Like this? Or that he whispered," He lifted himself up on his toes to get to Kurogane's ear. "like this?"

Kurogane stepped back and shook his head. "Hardly."

"Oh? Are you mad because he called you a virgin? Not that there's anything wrong with that."

"Well, he was wrong about that, but no." He turned his head away and frowned.

"So if it's none of those things," Fai turned the ninja's head back toward him. "Then what is it?”

"You're the one who said I was jealous, not me."

"If it's none of that, then what's your problem?"

"You and your stupid assumptions."

"My stupid assumptions, huh? Well you were acting like this before I assumed anything. Is Kurosama done throwing a tantrum because another boy touched his toys?" Fai smirked a little and got a bit closer. "Don't worry so much, you're the only one who knows how to turn me on." Slowly he pressed his lips against Kurogane's.

Kurogane's eyes narrowed a bit, even through the kiss. And when Fai stopped, he put his hand on his uninjured shoulder and gently pushed him back a step. "Is that so?" He frowned.

"Aa," As he was pushed back the robe slipped down one arm, catching at his elbow. "Only Kurosama."

"Then perhaps you should work on your reactions. The only way I'd know if I turned you on is if you tell me. That's really comforting, isn't it?" He dropped his hand from the mage's shoulder and left the kitchen, dropping his body onto the couch and leaning his head over the back of it again.

"Well, how would you know if you've never tried?" Of course Fai knew what this was all about. He knew the stress that was in Kurogane's head because it was in his own, but the current game they were playing was better than dwelling on the matters they couldn’t do anything about. "Do you really not know how to tell with me?" Fai followed him into the living room and swung one leg over the man's lap, his knees to either side of his hips. "Is this something you're not familiar with? Or has it been so long that you just need a reintroduction to the human body?" The mage nuzzled his face against Kurogane's neck, and he felt himself shudder as his scent filled him.

At first, Kurogane didn't move when Fai settled his weight on him, but after a moment, he closed his eyes and lifted his hand to rest on the mage's lower back. "I've never tried? I'm not familiar with it? You're going to say that to me after yesterday?" He shifted his hips a little then, but was careful not to move his head given the position the mage took. "Or did you forget everything when you blacked out?"

"Hmm?" The blond sighed against his neck, his body shifting to Kurogane's touch. "No I remember. But you barely got a taste of me yesterday." When the man moved his waist, Fai's body slipped into place like a puzzle piece, feeling Kurogane below him. "Nn."

"You were injured." The reply was simple as Kurogane pressed his hand a bit against Fai's lower back.

“Well I’m better today,” The pressure of the hand against his back pushed Fai against the ninja. "Ah!" He gasped as he his tongue flicked at an exposed collarbone. "Being left like this hurt far more." It had been so long since he'd been touched like this and Fai started to worry about what would happen if Kurogane pressed them together again.

"Did it? I find that hard to believe." Kurogane's voice was a bit softer and lacked the biting tone from before. His hips pushed up just enough to grind against the other man, and he lifted his head so he could see Fai, pulling his neck away from the blond's tongue.

"Ah!" Ivory hands gripped the man's shoulders as Fai gasped, his head bowed against his chest as he took a moment to breath, but his body was already responding to Kurogane's attentions. And if the ninja couldn't feel it, he could see it in those dark sapphire eyes as he mage turned his head up to him.

"See? Now you're showing it a lot better." The ninja smirked as he pushed his hips up a second time.

"Am I?" Fai panted out as he straightened his back so he was sitting taller than the other man. He wrapped his arm around the back of his neck as he moved his hips, slowly working them into a rolling motion as he pressed harder. "How about now?" He asked as he looked down at him.

That smirk remained on Kurogane's lips. "Even better." He whispered, leaning in and licking Fai's neck as if to return the mage's favor from earlier.

"Kurosama..." His hand came up to that short black hair, holding Kurogane there as he arched his neck back when he was unable to hold back a moan.

Kurogane licked again: a slow, deliberate movement which ended in a smirk. "You should try to control yourself, though. We're guests in someone else's home."

"Shut up." His command was barely a breath past his lips before he pulled on Kurogane's hair to force his head back far enough so he could crush his lips again those of the ninja's.

Even during the kiss, Kurogane's voice echoed in his throat, his hips pressing up once again.

Another moan was swallowed between them as Fai pushed his tongue into Kurogane's mouth, the motion of his hips getting faster. His robe now lay nearly forgotten around his waist, kept there only by the large hand against his back.

Kurogane's other hand came to rest against Fai's hip, guiding the smaller man's motion a bit as he broke the kiss and whispered against his lips, "You know....you're going to make a mess if you're not careful." He smirked again as that hand slowly moved, his fingers trailing over the bit of bunched robe before sliding along his upper thigh.

"Do you care enough to make me stop?" Fai devoured Kurogane's mouth again, letting the ninja take more control of their bodies.

"I care enough to make sure it happens." Kurogane managed between kisses as his fingers reached their destination, sliding along his heat while his hips continued to grind up.

"Aah! Ahaa!" Fire followed by ice darted through his veins as fast as Fai's heart could pump. His arm struck out to grab at the back of the couch to keep him from falling while his body arched in an attempt to thrust himself into the ninja's hand.

"Oh? And now you're getting loud." The ninja teased as he continued to move his hand and his hips. He leaned in once again and placed a kiss to the mage's neck.

"I-I- AH! Fu-" The curse on Fai's lips was over powered by a whimper as his knees pressed against Kurogane's thighs and his hand clutched the couch so hard he feel the seams burn into his palm. "Kurogane!" His body quivered and he gasped as he released against Kurogane's hand.

Kurogane kept his face against Fai's neck. "Now you've gone and done it."

"Hnm?" Fai was sure he heard words but he couldn't comprehend them at the moment. He tried to let go of the couch and every motion of his fingers burned as he straightened them out.

"Nothing." Without even being bothered by the other man's weight, Kurogane picked him up and stood, carrying him to the bathroom to clean him up.

Fai's senses slowly started to come back to him as he was placed on the edge of the bath. He leaned back against the cold tile of the wall, his legs spread, and his hand resting lazily against his stomach. He couldn't even imagine how he appeared to the other man right now. His hair, still damp from his shower, clung to his neck and cheek. His exposed flesh heated and still flushed from his climax as his glazed eyes tried to find focus.

By the time Fai seemed to come around, Kurogane had already exerted an immense amount of self-control in cleaning the other man up. Not once did his hands stray even as he finished and readjusted the mage's robe. "You need to rest. So make sure you sleep well, okay?"


	6. Neutralization

Kurogane groaned and lifted his arm to cover his eyes as light filtered through the window. Any attempt to roll and press his face into the back of the couch for just a few more minutes of sleep would have been fruitless, and the sooner he got moving, the better, especially since he was still incredibly wary about being in that man's home.

A second groan and he sat up, stretching his arms above his head and looking in the direction of the bedroom. Should he check on the mage after last night? After washing him up, Kurogane simply carried the other man to the bedroom and set him on the bed. If he had stayed in the room with him, sleeping definitely wouldn't have occurred, so the couch really was the only option for him. He didn't really trust himself not to let his annoyance at the mage escalate. Next time, he'd probably act on his anger instead of making snarky comments that forced the other man to act.

Another stretch and he was off the couch entirely, taking slow steps into the kitchen to continue the food search from the night before. This time, however, silence filled the kitchen even as he found food and started preparing it. He didn't want to wake the other man if he could help it, especially since he wasn't entirely sure how either of them would react to seeing each other this morning.

Fai’s fingers walked up the window. They moved with idle purpose leaving nothing more than a smudge in their half preformed lemniscus. He watched as they danced with latent grace, his eyes unfocused. They were fixated on a concept miles away, a place designed to dull pain. In it were rivers, valleys, and cold refreshing mountains. Was it a picture from his youth in happier times? He didn’t know, but he did know it was the first lie he ever told. If he was there and not in his present body, it didn’t hurt as much; it became more of a cramp than a whole body seizure. 

The mage had been up since the first spike of pain at sunrise and he’d been slowly coaxing it away ever since. He had crawled over to place his cheek against the cold glass of the windowed wall. He was thankful Kurogane didn’t choose to stay with him last night. Fai wouldn’t be able to cover this up if he didn’t have the time to prepare his mind for it, and he didn’t hold the mental fortitude to deal with a thousand questions, suspicions, and accusations, be it spoken or otherwise. That man managed to make even silence feel like an interrogation. He had already given Kurogane all the information he needed to know for now. Fai needed more time to piece it together himself before he worried the other man any more than he already was. There was one matter that was far more pressing then anything those two had going on right now.

“Syaoran,” Fai stood up and pulled on his clothing, but when he heard the familiar sounds of food being cooked he froze. The ninja was up and Fai had to make a choice. Their relationship was placed in his hands last night. 

He walked to the kitchen. His footfalls softer than a cat’s as he watched the ninja move about the unknown space, fumbling with the unfamiliar appliances, and Fai couldn’t help but shake his head. “You really are like a fish out of water here aren’t you?” He stepped over to him and slid his hand down Kurogane’s arm so he could control the way the ninja’s hand moved over the range. “It senses body heat. If you try to hit all those buttons and things, you’ll just confuse it, and it won’t do anything at all.”

“Stove active, surface area warming.”

“See.” Blue eyes flashed up at ninja through a curtain of blond before looking back at the range and letting his hand drop. The second their eyes met Fai’s body flashed through every touch of others fingertips, mouth, and tongue as if Kurogane and burned them into his flesh last night. Fai had already made his choice long before any of that had occurred, it just took him a while to realize it. 

"If you came out here to make fun of me, save it." Kurogane muttered, but did not pull away from Fai's help. He wouldn't agree with the mage, but he had a feeling that this type of stove was infinitely more confusing than the one he finally got used to at the other place. His fist clenched around the handle of the pan at the thought of that other place. The place where they last saw the kid, and now he wasn't safe.

He turned away from Fai for a moment, cooking in silence before his lips set into his usual frown and he glanced over his shoulder at him. "Are you in any pain today? You've been up since dawn, haven't you? You should have tried to sleep more." He watched the other man for a moment before turning his attention back to the food in the pan. "And if you're in pain, don't go overboard. After all, you never know when we might get to stop to rest again, so take it easy while you can." He muttered similar words to those the mage used on him last night.

Fai sat down at the end of the counter his chin fitting into the palm of his hand. "Don't worry. I'll be fine. It's not as bad as it might seem." He wasn't lying about that. Fai was a man who knew pain. Not just aches, broken bones, or bloody wounds, but the type of pain that crawls into the very core of a person, a pain that reconstructs the body from the inside out and leaves a creature behind that is but a husk. Yes Fai knew pain and he wouldn't give this recent bout the pleasure of slowing him down.

"I figure we'll wait for our friend to return before we make any moves. He's the one that knows this place and he'll be the one that can get us into the center spire." 

"He's not my friend." Kurogane muttered as he finished cooking and moved the food to two plates. "And I hate that we have to rely on him. Almost as much as I hate..." He shook his head as he set Fai's plate down and looked at him. "You better eat it all, or I'll kick your ass."

"Anything else you need to get out of your system?" Fai poked at his food a little before he started eating. "I know you don't like him. He's not my favorite person either. But we need him, and for as long as we need him we should play nice."

"As long as playing nice doesn't involve sickening displays of affection between the two of you, fine. Otherwise, I won't promise not to punch him in the face." Kurogane set his own plate down and ate it without even glancing at the other man.

"I promise not to run off into the sunset with the man who killed me once." Fai couldn't hold back on that touch of snark. 

"Kill you is too strong of a word. I merely ended that version of your existence." The silken tendrils of a familiar voice broke into their morning. "And sunsets are far too boorish, I'd take you somewhere more exciting than that."

Fai smiled cooly. "I don't believe there is a place in this world you could take me that would make up for the company."

"Ouch. Appears someone is grumpy this morning." Seishirou's fingers curled around Fai's shoulder. "What happened to playing nice?"

Kurogane dropped his utensils on the plate, not even wincing at the loud clang that resulted from the act. He pushed his plate away, the food barely eaten before he completely lost whatever appetite he had. "Oh shut up."

"If you didn't make it so easy. . ." The offending hand lifted from the blonde as Seishirou stepped away and took the plate from in front of Kurogane. "You shouldn't waste anything. Including the opportunity I created for you last night."

"Excuse me?" Fai seemed perplexed.

"While you two were here enjoying each other’s," He stopped to search for a delicate word for what he knew the two had done in his home. "company, I created a chance for you to get inside the tower. It will be on the Southside at approximately 11am." 

"That's in one hour. How did you-" Fai realized too late that he didn't want to know.

"You don't want to know." The dark man echoed his thoughts

Kurogane watched the exchange, a rather neutral expression on his face. He would not give this man the satisfaction of seeing just how annoyed he was with this entire situation. He would not let either of them get to him. Not now. "Who cares how." The ninja shook his head and stood. "The only thing I care about is what the fuck does any of that mean? It's too vague. For all I know you could be sending us to some sort of stupid trap."

"I wouldn't trifle with such things at this point. Neither of you have anything I want, and it wouldn't be worth it. I merely desire to return a favor." He stood at the counter, his hip leaning against the edge. "So you shouldn't waste any more time."

"Yes of course. Thank you for your hospitality." Fai rose from his chair is food gone just like Kurogane demanded of him. "Let’s go Kurosama before we impose any further. I don't like the thought of Syaoran being held in that place any longer than he already has."

"Fine, but if this ends up being some sort of trap, I'm going to come back here and kill you, bastard." The ninja glared just a bit at Seishirou before he looked at Fai and frowned.

"How will we know where to go?" Fai asked, "Southside is pretty general." 

A cold slow smile bowed the other man's lips as he looked the two of them over one last time. There was still something so naive about them. Perhaps it was that intoxicating mix of Alice and the Cheshire cat found in the mage and the puppy combined with a wolf in the ninja, but Seishirou had to play one last game. "You'll know."

"I figured," Fai sighed in defeat as he pulled Kurogane into the elevators.

Kurogane waited until they were alone again to mutter under his breath and let the frown come to his face. "He enjoys fucking with us. Bastard." He glanced at the mage once before he looked straight ahead. "He said the Southside, right?"

"Yeah, the Southside at 11am. Bastard or not, if he helps us save Syaoran, we should be thankful." Fai admitted.

"Then you can be thankful. I just won't kill him." Kurogane grumbled.

"I'm sure he appreciates that." Fai smiled as the transport stopped.

"I don't care if he does." Kurogane winced a little as they stepped out of the transport and his eyes tried to adjust to the different light. 

This place was nothing like the greener, more welcoming area they had been the previous day, before Seishirou came and interrupted their meal with news of Syaoran. The sterile feeling that Kurogane was wary of was even more prevalent here. Any splash of color was muted, overpowered by the large, white tower that rose high into the air before them. 

The ninja's frown deepened as he craned his neck to try to see just how high the building actually went. "It's here, isn't it?" He spoke lowly to the mage, not taking his eyes off the expansive building just yet.

Fai kept sapphire eyes to the ground. He didn't need to look up to see the opaque crystal monolith that stood before them. It's sheen acting as secondary light source for the city below. The words Telam indented in perfect block text along the side as if the person inside desired to make sure his name was known to all those below him. And in this case, Fai mused, that would be everyone.

"Hm?" Fai's brow arched. There was something in the air. A sweet smell, a familiar smell. One that sent shivers down his spine the way only one thing in all his existence could ever do. A scent he knew well, and a scent a hidden part of him longed for despite any bodily changes. "Blood." 

His eyes darted up to Kurogane before they rapidly took in the surroundings. "What time is it?"

"Eleven." Kurogane answered simply, though his eyes narrowed just slightly. "Do you feel that?" His voice was quieter, but terser as he took one step towards the tower, then another. His fists clenched at his side, the artificial one tighter than the real.

"Aa." There was scarcely a nod of his head as he walked up to the building. "Here," His hand touched the wall and a seam of light split down the center as it did before and the wall opened into the dark. "Brutes first." Fai stepped to the side in the mockery of chivalry as he allowed Kurogane to step in front of him.

"Tch." Kurogane paused just before the door, and he glanced out of the corner of his eyes at the mage. "It gets tiring being your human meat shield, you know." As he spoke, he stepped through the doorway, his eyes trying to adjust to the lack of light. 

The ninja glanced around to see if there was anything he could use as a makeshift weapon if he needed to, but the hallway was empty and flat. Another few feet in and he paused, waiting for the mage to enter behind him.  
"I'm merely protecting your prize possession." Fai stepped in behind the bigger man. The two of them walked within the company of their footfalls until Fai narrowed his eyes in the dark. He lifted a gentle hand to the center of Kurogane’s back, signal for him to stop. "There's a door, the scent is coming through there."

"Oh? Isn't that just a nice way to say you're just protecting yourself?" Kurogane muttered as he glanced to the side. Never one to stand on ceremony, he kicked the door open, staying just out of the room and frowning when the scent the mage spoke of tried to overpower his nose. 

Stepping into the room, he kicked a body, mostly on purpose, and it squelched as he moved through the puddle of blood. "This is a problem." He shook his head and crouched, grabbing an unbloodied section of the man's shoulder and frowning. "I'd say they were dead for fifteen minutes, tops..."

Fai's eyes were slivered jewels as he looked around the room. The room was dark, with black cables and wire mesh hanging from the ceiling. Steel fences mixed with mortar bricks made up the walls. It was like a purposeful contrast to the order just a hallway away. 

He felt his skin flush and his heart quicken. Five corpses, and all of them just as fresh as the poor bastard at Kurogane's feet. The sweet metallic smell of blood was so heavy in the air that Fai could taste it on his tongue, and he licked his lips, a lingering ghost of vampiric desire. This was an instant attack. If Fai could step out of his body and observe the scene objectively he would almost marvel at the way the executions were carried out. Fast, elegant, and not much room for pain if any at all. 

"Seishirou."

Kurogane grunted a little as he wordlessly checked the body's pockets. After pulling out a small card, he stood again, and used a clean corner of the man's suit to wipe the blood off the bottom of his shoes. "This may help." He tossed the card to Fai and looked around once more. "We need to find the kid, fast..."

Fai caught the card between his fingers and flipped it between them. "Jason Lieve." The ID showed a handsome boy, about Syaoran's age. And if you can judge a person by their identification cards, he seemed to be a rather nice boy.

He looked up at Kurogane as he spoke, and placed the card into his pocket. "My guess is, up. Aren't the evil masterminds always up?"

Now if only they had some stairs.

"With a tower this big, I don't think there's any option but up anyway." The ninja moved carefully through the room, avoiding blood and bodies as he made his way to the panel at the other side. He looked at it for a moment before he picked up the limp wrist of the closest body, tugged down the sleeve, and shoved the barcode against the scanner. 

There was an audible click, and the wall opened to reveal what looked less like the high-tech lifts he had to deal with in this world and more like the lifts they had encountered in other modern worlds. There was another barcode panel, but this one was riddled with buttons and a lever as well.

After he kicked the body inside, he turned to look at Fai. "You coming?"

It was a simple concept. The strong use the weak to survive. The smart see potential in any situation and use it to their advantage, and Fai watched nature at work as Kurogane manhandled the corpses to open the lift. To anyone else this might have seemed callous, but to those who knew death it could have just as easily been them the floor. But it wasn't, and if Fai was going to pity the passing of men that would have shot them on sight they might as well make use of the bodies.

"This is why you go first." He stepped between the dead man's legs and leaned back against the wall, for the first time a bit thankful Syaoran wasn't with them.

"Why? Because I'd rather pick the body up than waste time sawing off his arm with a knife?" Kurogane waited a moment before he pushed the button for the highest floor and pulled the lever. 

It was certainly slower than the other lifts, and the ninja was almost thankful for that. He idly kicked the body a bit as he waited for the lift to slow, then come to a grinding halt. 

"So, shall we?"

A finely arched eyebrow quirked on Fai's elfin face. Perhaps there was a level of desensitization to this.

"Yeah." The mage responded as the doors slid open first to the side, then another door lifted up blinding the both of them with light. 

Fai raised a hand as he stepped forward. If they got ambushed now it wouldn't matter given their grave disadvantage of sight. 

"Fai!!"

"Kuropon!" Fai knew those mingled excited voices, but he couldn't see through the white light. 

"Syaroan? Mokona!?"

Kurogane grabbed Fai's shoulder and prevented him from being the first to leave the lift. He shoved the mage behind him and lifted the body, throwing it out into the room first. It was too bright to see if there were any traps, so it would be better to trigger them with something dead rather than something alive.

"Be careful." He whispered harshly, his hand coming to shield his eyes. "Don't do anything stupid when it's too difficult to see."

When nothing seemed to happen, he stepped out first, still wary and ready for a fight if it came to that.

A slow mocking clap filled the room, and with each reverberation Fai's eyes seem to adjust to the light. He stepped out beside Kurogane and was momentarily impressed with the scope of the room they were in. The ceiling was high and arched a to vault. The walls were a series of white marble columns and arches that gave the illusion of a temple. What better design for a person that obviously worshiped themselves. Fai thought

The clapping stopped. "You two made it! I'm so impressed! You cheated a little, but I'll let it slide, just because I'm so delighted to have you here!" The voice was young and pitched excitedly every so often. 

Fai found focus on a handsome man standing in the center of the room. He was dressed from head to toe in white. White cape, white shirt, white pants, white gloves, white belt. His stark black hair was pulled back and tied at neck. Fai was starting to miss color.

"Cut the shit." Kurogane's movements were slow as he inched closer, kicking the body again simply to see some of the blood smear on that too-white floor. "I don't care if you're impressed, I don't even care who the fuck you think you are. The only thing I care about is taking back the kid. And you will give him back to us, or you will regret it."

Kurogane's threats only seemed to delight the man. "Ohohoh! That sounds rather ungrateful! I brought you all here to thank you! Taking the boy and the creature." The man waved a gentlemanly hand toward a barred room at the side of the massive hall, and within it were a brown haired boy and hopping white pork bun, both looking unharmed.

"I've wanted nothing more than to meet all of you since the day I tasted this one's mind." In seconds he was on Fai with only curls of black smoke to occupy the his former place. 

Cold fingers danced like the caress of a familiar lover over Fai's neck, and the mages eyes widened. "You?" 

"I was so pleased to find you and not the ghost of Mr. Scott. I do hate ghost stories after all. The dead should stay dead. That’s just the natural order of things."

"The fuck? This is what you were talking about?" Kurogane snapped at Fai before he forced it down and glared at the man, if one could call him that. 

"No one takes a child as a thank you for anything. What kind of stupid bull are you trying to feed us? Let them go, and let the mage go. I swear you're going to regret touching him like that."

The other man nuzzled Fai's cheek like an over satisfied cat. "I really am sorry about all the pain, it must have really hurt. But to be fair I didn't know who you were then." Those icy hands slid down Fai's arms and over his fingers as the mage felt the other’s weight press against his back. His body locked up under the pressure, and only his eyes could move toward Kurogane. 

"Dear sweet 'Ninja' was it." He tested the word on his lips and seemed to be rather fond of it. "I am Telam. I am the city. I am the world. You four... are not. You four are unique. You taste of several different places. I didn't mean to hurt this one here. It just happened. I got excited, perhaps a bit overzealous and for that I do regret my behavior."

"And if you don't let him go, you're dead. Or are you just so narcissistic that you're bad at listening to what people say to you?" Kurogane took one step closer, clenching his fist. "So I'm not going to say it again. You let him go, and you let them go, and you won't have to deal with me."


	7. Refuse

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Due to that pesky life thing getting in the way, Telam went on an extended hiatus. Please forgive us for our late update and we plan to make it up to all of you in the next chapter or two. (Or at least show you why we will be updating the rating ;) )

Oh these four were truly a wonder indeed! He felt them the moment they entered his world and then he felt nothing. It was like they blinked out. For a while he feared that they had vanished or worse: died. That would have been a travesty. Something that stirred him up shouldn’t just disappear without letting him feel it, see it, taste it. But it was hard for him to get much of anything beyond the wall. It was tainted out there, dirty and vile and filled with miscreants. It was a plague that spread itself like viscous ooze. 

One could just imagine his joy when he came across the pretty one using Mr. Scott's identification. He reached out a part of his soul to touch his and was seared by the light of it. He pressed into his mind, straight into his bones, and felt every part of him. He learned of every world his body had ever been and every flavor that ever touched his tongue. He knew him better than any of those vague flashes of lovers ever would. Then, when the mage retaliated, it was a sudden cold burn like a fire that lacked warmth. It was black, frozen, and had a depth of pain so vast it he could never reach its end. He feared he himself would get sucked into it, but as it was he had to pull away. It was a side effect to his curiosity; sometimes things backfired, but it was a sacrifice he was happy to make. He wanted this new being in the flesh. He wanted him and the others so he could feel them in the same way. Be one with them, become them, to know them. So he took the boy. And now here they were, the five of them. With the mage held firmly in his arms as the ninja stared at him with a hate that was so real and so invigorating.

He felt alive.

“You threaten me when I merely show my gratitude? You are all so strange.” He didn’t want to let the warm body go, but he forced his arms down and allowed to blonde to walk away from him. He could live without them a little while longer.

Fai took cautious steps back to the ninja’s side. His body burned from the tips of nerves to the core of his spine. His feet had moved like they’d forgotten his weight until even his slight stature became too much and he fell into Kurogane.

Telam hissed as if in sympathy for the mage. “I know it hurts. One of the problems with our connection is that it may have a negative effect on your magic and that can spread to your body.”

Kurogane snorted as his arms came out and caught Fai, pulling him close and holding him there. His frown deepened, and his eyes never left the 'man' standing in front of them. "Oh. So just because you 'know' it hurts, that makes it okay? You think that's going to convince me you're showing gratitude? You kidnap our kid. You screw with this one..." He nodded towards Fai, and his eyes narrowed. "To the point where, not only do you hurt him, but you alter his very being? What the hell is wrong with you? You think that's okay? How about I alter your damned being and cut your face off? Then I can say 'I know it hurts' and 'one of the problems with cutting your face off is that it has a negative effect on you.' Would you feel the gratitude then, asshole?" 

A huff of a laugh came from the huddled form in the ninja’s arms. The man was always one with words and even now Fai couldn’t help but find it at least a little endearing.

"I explained earlier it was an accident." A ghost of a pout came to Telam's too white face. "I saw your story, I saw his life, and it was exquisite." He reached an elegant hand out to Kurogane. “I didn’t have an intention of hurting him, or taking away his ‘being’ was it? Anyway, the magic was an element I had not taken into account and I wasn’t capable of handling it. So when we were one, my abilities tried to override his. It’s not going to last forever. It generally feels quite good, I assure you. Would you let me ‘see’ you, and I can prove it.”

Kurogane stepped back enough to stay out of reach, his arms still around the mage. "You're kidding right? You just said you know it hurts, and you're trying to tell me it feels good? Your assurance means shit to me. I don't know you. I don't care to know you or let you know me. This guy can barely move because of your invasive creepy shit. Don't come near him, or me. Don't you even think about hurting the kid or even that stupid manjuu."

“The boy and the creature are perfectly safe. And of course I know it hurts him,” Telam nodded his head to the blond. “He’s different. I know more about him than you ever imagine.”

Fai turned his head, but didn’t leave the protection of the bigger man’s arms. Telam was trying to goad Kurogane. The man was actually enjoying every reaction the ninja was giving him. “We can’t fight you. Not like this any way.” It was obvious this whole place was under Telam’s control. They weren't just outnumbered and outgunned, they were also exposed. Telam made damn sure there were few options for them. “Just release our friends, and we will leave. That’s all we want.”

"Leave?" There was a childlike innocence to Telam's voice as if the concept was as foreign to him as any color outside of white. 

"That's what he said, isn't it?" Kurogane barked. "Or are you deaf, too?"

"But you can't leave."

"We can't?" Fai knew it wasn't going to be a simple request. They never are. 

"Well I suppose it isn't entirely true. You can, but why would you want to?"

The creature's confusion echoed across Fai's features as he shifted his eyes to look at Kurogane before turning back to Telam. He gently pushed himself away to stand on his own. What made this man so delusional? 

Kurogane's arms dropped to the side, his fists clenching a bit. "You're joking, right?" His voice was even but somewhat lower than before: raspier, as if he were holding back something particularly viscous. "We're not from here. We have no intention of staying here, so we're going to leave. Let the kid go, so we can do that."

"Well no, I don't want to. And I have something you need. You're looking for his parents, right?" 

Fai's eyes narrowed.

"From what I read in that one's mind you're hoping to find the people that shouldn't exist. I can help you and then you can stay right?"

"Well, then we've got a problem. You don't want to let us leave, and we don't want your help. You kidnapped one of us, and hurt another. None of us have any reason to trust you. We're not that stupid." Kurogane's eyes remained locked on that white face.

Telam waved his hand again. "No, what you say defies logic. I can give you everything you need. You're the ones being difficult. I think my offer is quite a nice peace offering."

Fai's watched every movement the other man made. "And you can give us what shouldn't exist? How does that not defy logic?"

"Well, because I'm me and you're you."

"Your inability to understand the word no defies logic." Kurogane quipped and snorted a bit. "We're not interested. Give us back our kid and the manjuu and let us go."

"No."

That was it. With one syllable their next action was decided.

Every pore in Fai’s body screamed in protest as he started to call out his power. Electricity sparked from the mage's fingers, blue energy arching down his arms. Even his patience had its limits.

The hair at the back of Kurogane's neck stood on end, but he reached back and put his arm out in front of Fai, shaking his head just slightly. "You're still hurt, aren't you?" He muttered to the mage before he glanced over at the kid's place behind those bars. "You can't give us anything, so there's no need for any of us to stay here. You've made that perfectly clear. There's nothing you can say that will make us want to be here, nor will we want to help you. And forcing us to help you won't work out for you either. So give it up."

There was a defeated slump to his shoulders. "Perhaps you just need more time to think. I'm probably being unfair and trying to make all of this happen at once." A grinding sound started to fill the room. It wasn't the noise of clockwork, but the breaking and cracking of plastic.

Fai stood down at the ninja’s request but before any further move could be made, the floor gave away below their feet. He reached out for Kurogane before his back slammed into the metal tunnel that opened up below them, pushing the air from his lungs. 

Instinct kicked in, and Kurogane pulled the mage to his chest, curling enough so that as they slid down the tunnel, it would be the ninja who hit bottom first, cushioning the other man with his body. He used his artificial arm to shield the mage's head, in case anything came down on them as they landed.

He didn't know how long they were sliding, but soon they were falling out of the tunnel, and Kurogane rolled, his back hitting the ground with a soft thud, grunting a little when the force of the fall and the mage's weight added to the impact.

With a groan, he turned his head and looked to see where they had fallen, his eyes narrowing and trying to adjust to the light, or lack of it as compared to that other room. Tall trees sprung up as far as he could see, and reedy grass swayed in the subtle breeze. His nose crinkled at the smell of mud and decay, but it was a familiar smell. A natural smell. Completely devoid of the metal and plastic of the city.

First he only opened one eye, then slowly the other before he pulled himself away from the larger man. "Where?" Fai looked right then left. Giant trees reached up like skyscrapers, their trunks as thick as houses. Through the leaves he could see sunlight shimmer as if it were gold through the dark canopy. His hand laid upon the grass. It was stiff and filled in with pine needles that were a welcoming prick into his palm. "How is this possible?"

The ninja stayed on the ground a bit longer. His head turned again so he could regard his companion. "I think the bigger question is how the hell are we going to get back and get the kid so we can get out of here?"

He slowly sat up, arching his back just until it popped, and he let out a soft groan. "I mean, this can't be anywhere near that other place, or it wouldn't look like this, right?" He motioned a little to those tall trees as he got to his feet.

Fai got to his feet despite the whine from his bones. "We can't even see where we came from." In the direction that they had come there was nothing there now but trees and leaves. It was as if the sky had just opened and spit them out, which wasn't that out of the ordinary. However, his next realization was. "I can still understand you."

Kurogane's mouth opened, then shut as his brow creased. "I didn't even realize we might not be able to understand each other. Doesn't that mean we can't actually be that far from the kid and the manjuu? Or..." He cut himself off and frowned. It was a thought he didn't want to voice. One that involved that bastard affecting Fai more than they thought. So instead he made his way to the closest tree, craning his neck as he looked up to see how high the lowest branch was. It was rather high, too high for him to reach without some significant climbing, but the trunk lacked anything to grab onto. 

He looked around, kicking some of the taller grass aside until he found two sharper rocks, and he walked back to the tree, slamming one into the trunk, then the other, slightly higher, cutting through the bark and into the fleshy wood before he pulled out the lower one and jammed it in even higher. The tree oozed sap over the rocks and into his fingers. The slightly-sticky substance made it difficult to grip the rocks, so he just gripped harder, cutting into the flesh of both of his palms. The artificial hand creaked as the rock cut into the prosthetic flesh, while blood started to slide along the creases of his real hand, slowly dripping from his wrist, though a few more drops fell each time he slammed the rock into the trunk.

After a few more painful cuts and grunts, Kurogane was able to grab that lowest branch and pull himself up, standing at the thickest part of it as he tried to gain his bearings.

The mage's head tilted to one side, then to the other. His mouth opened a few times to express something, but he let it go as he watched the ninja climb. He could smell the man’s blood, but he wouldn't say anything. He just knew that if the roles had been reversed Kurogane would have all but tossed Fai away from the tree and the ninja and giant pine would forever have been mortal enemies. Instead Fai sat down on a large rock, leg crossed over his knee, his chin in his hand and watched. This method worked a lot better for him.

"Hey!" Kurogane called down after pulling himself up three more branches. He was careful not to drip a little blood on his face since he used that hand to shield his eyes from the sun as it filtered through a space in the leaves. "I think I see something" He pointed, though he was unsure which direction he was actually facing. "Turn a little to your left. In that direction there's something." He yelled. "You probably can't see it from down there."

Fai's head tilted back in the direction Kurogane was pointing. "I'll take your word for it!" He shouted back up at him. Something wasn't adding up and it was sending his brain into a tailspin. It left him feeling unsure and vulnerable. "We should just start heading that way as soon as you're done playing, Kurosaru!"

"I'm not a monkey!" Kurogane shouted back as he made his way down from the branches. He took his jacket off and used it as a makeshift rope to get down from that last branch, though the fabric itself wasn't long enough and he landed a bit worse than he intended. Rubbing his leg a little with his artificial hand, so as to not smear any more blood than he already had, he took his place at the mage's side and looked in the direction he mentioned before. "What else do we have to lose?"

"Plenty. There's always plenty to lose." Fai leaned against Kurogane, his shoulder pressing into the other man's chest. "You should treat that arm better. Might be the only one we can get for a while."

"I can wrap it..." Kurogane mumbled and bowed his head a little. "It was the only thing I could think of. And at least now we know where to go."

"Give it here." Fai took the arm and laid it over his lap. "This is impressive, all from climbing a tree?" He raised one brow high as he looked over the torn prosthetic. Bits of metal moved under the torn flesh.

"Yeah we'll have to cover this up before anyone sees it." He said, not really sure if there would be anyone around to be bothered by the sight. Before Kurogane could say anything Fai tore up the hem of his tunic and started to wrap the strips around the ninja's arm, his expression maternal as he handled each scrape like Kurogane could feel it. His fingers testing the cloth, his hand smoothing over the strips to make sure there would be nothing to pull or snag.

Kurogane lifted his head enough to watch him, and he lifted his other hand to touch the mage's cheek, but stopped when he saw his own blood. "Do you mind doing this one, too?" His lips twisted into a bit of a smile.

Fai looked up from his work with the metal arm and took a careful look at the one made of flesh and bone. “You’re hopeless,” He shook his head. “Kurogane, the great warrior of all the dimensions and protector of balance and time, got done in by a tree.” He accented his remark with wry smile.

"Do I look done in to you?" He muttered and cussed a little under his breath. "After everything that happened, you think this is a problem? It's just a cut." He shook his head a bit and looked at Fai, frowning just enough to look completely displeased.

“Without proper treatment a cut can be fatal. You know that.” Fai looked around himself, holding the bleeding hand in his lap. “Ah!” He stood up, carefully giving his arm back to the other man. 

“There. It should work.” A few paces away his lithe body bent low over a plant. The tiny bush had thick green stalks standing up from the earth. There was a wet snap as he broke one of the stems off. A clear gel oozed from it as the plant tried in vain to heal the wound Fai created. It was obviously what he wanted as he collected it on his finger, testing its viscosity between his thumb and index. Whatever conclusions he came up with seemed to satisfy him, and he walked back over to the ninja. “This should work. The color is a bit different from what I’m used to but the shape is the same. Back home it was used as an ointment and a lotion for dry skin. People would apply it to their lips on windy days so the cold wouldn’t chap them. It also has some antibiotic characteristics. It’s slight but better than nothing.”

Fai pressed the gel out into the ninja’s palm, carefully smearing it along with the blood before taking a leaf to bandage it. “We should take the whole thing with us.” 

"Tch." Kurogane hissed a little as Fai smeared that ooze onto his wound. "We just got ejected from some weird plastic city by some asshole who looks whiter than snow, and you're worried about dry skin?" He shook his head and looked down at his hand once Fai was done. "Do what you want...I don't care."

“One step at a time Kurosama. No sense in worrying about the things we can't fix right now. It won’t change the fact that we’re here and what we have to do.” Fai stood up again, checking the ninja in the shoulder his hip as he walked by him. “No sense in risking the good arm. Otherwise I might have to cut it off with a stick.” He grinned twistedly, but despite his words there was something far off in his eyes. Something was working and calculating even while he tried to keep the mood light. 

“Can you gather that plant?” He rubbed his shoulders. “I’m afraid I’m not much good at brute strength at the moment.”

"Not funny." The ninja grunted as he walked over to the plant looked at it. "This is all I'm good for, then?" He muttered, and while he tried not to sound too annoyed by that prospect, his tone definitely had a bit of bite to it. He crouched a bit and poked at the ground with one finger, testing the soil before he pulled an entire stalk up, roots and all. "Is this how you wanted me to do it? Or should I break it so you can get more of the gooey stuff?”

“No, that’s perfect.” The mage smiled fondly ignoring the other’s agitation. “I’ll break it down later. But while we still have daylight we should move,” Fai pointed over his shoulder. “You said you saw something back that way right?”

Kurogane looked in the direction Fai was pointing and he nodded once. "I couldn't tell what it was, but it was definitely something other than trees." He turned in that direction and narrowed his eyes a bit, though he couldn't see anything but the thick, tall trunks of the forest surrounding them. "It didn't look too far..."

“After you.” Fai waved his hands in a mockery of formality to allow the ninja to take point. It wasn’t much of a lead but it was something. When they got their bearings again Fai told himself he would try to open a window to the witches shop. She wasn’t there anymore, but her young charge was proving to be very capable with a wealth of potential that was just starting to get tapped. The endeavor would hurt, probably zap him for the rest of the night, but if the shop's young proprietor could help, it would be worth the risk.

With a grunt, Kurogane trudged. He kept glancing over at the mage, but he made sure to be as discreet as possible. It wasn't like it would matter if he worried about the idiot anyway, right?  
The walk wasn't a long one, oddly enough. The number of trees made the distance deceptive. Or maybe it was just because their trek took them through clusters of bushes, trees, more bushes. The scenery, while definitely a nice change from the city, was a bit redundant. 

He stopped as they neared their destination and he held his arm out to keep Fai from walking in front of him. Just beyond the next line of trees was a small clearing. Around the outskirts of the open land were wooden and thatch cabins, and there were soft voices coming from them. Male. Female. Child. And for a moment Kurogane stared, eyes narrowed. How did these people get here? Were they ejected just as the two of them had been? Did they find their own way out? Either way, he didn't trust it, but he also knew they didn't have many options.

A man walked out of one of the huts to check the fire pit in the middle of the settlement. He stopped poking the embers and looked around as though he could feel eyes on him, and for a moment he looked in their direction, but he didn't seem to notice them, as he looked in another direction for much longer. 

Kurogane hesitated, glancing at Fai as if to ask, 'should we go?'

Fai stopped short of running into Kurogane’s arm and followed the taller man’s gaze. There were other people here. He shouldn’t have been surprised; it there hadn’t been Telam went through the effort of that metal joy ride just for their benefit. 

He stepped in front of Kurogane lest the man at the fire be scared out of his wits by the six foot tall, hostile Japanese man that appeared out of the woods. “Pardon!” He shouted in answer to Kurogane’s unvoiced question and to get the other man’s attention.

The man at the fire jumped, obviously two strangers was the last thing he expected but at the same time he didn’t seem confused to see them. The fire he was tending glowed against his weathered face, and glinted off a pair of taped spectacles. His clothing was clean but showed several years of wear as even in the dim glow Fai could see that it was faded. “More from Telam!” He shouted to no one Fai could see.

Kurogane moved when the man spoke, standing right behind Fai and looking around the cabins as more men came out. Each one looked a bit haggard, like they had all been there for years, but none of them looked surprised, or even remotely intimidated by the two of them. 

"How did you make it here?" One of the men asked, coming to stand by the man at the fire. Maybe they were related? Their faces looked as though they could match. Same hard, brown eyes. Same nose. Same frown. They even seemed to move similarly. Twins, maybe? Brothers at the very least, as neither of them looked like they were any older than fifty, but they couldn't be much younger than that either.

Kurogane glanced at Fai before he shrugged. "I climbed one of the trees."

"You what?" That second man arched a brow at him, and Kurogane couldn't blame him for not necessarily believing him. He wouldn't believe him either.

So the ninja lifted his hands to show the makeshift bandages on both of his hands. "Used some rocks. I saw something over here, so we came."

Fai smiled, that one practiced and perfect for court smile he always had cocked and loaded. "Yes, we came from Telam. We got shot out somewhere over by the hills. It was a long walk but we made it to you. I hope we aren't intruding."

"Nah, we're all from the same place. Jensen over there," One of the men pointed back over his shoulder to another man who sat back on one of the stoops. He was watching the scene but not bothering to become a part of it. "Was one of the first. We all kinda gathered of up and made this little town for ourselves. It's nothing like home. But there's food, shelter, and people."

Fai took another look around. They certainly were an eclectic gathering. Mostly men but he could see in the distance the smaller silhouettes of a few women and a child's tenor would cut into the air once in a while. "I see. Do any of you happen to know how to get back?"

"Get back?" The first man shook his head and straightened himself up. "To be honest, none of us want to go back. What we have isn't much, but it's real."

"We have to go back. Our kid is up there..." Kurogane frowned a little and sighed once. He heard one of the men whistle, but he shrugged it off. 

"Well...That's difficult." The man continued. "I suppose we could talk to Jensen about it. Or maybe Markus might have an idea. He's one of those smart scientist types. Otherwise..." He motioned around the group. "We're the degenerates that Telam didn't want. The general riff-raff." 

"Yeah, well, we're not so innocent either." Kurogane looked at him.

“But you two look like you already been in the ringer. Especially the thin one.” The fire man stated, motioning to Fai and then the twin nodded his head and spoke lowly to two others before nodding his head back to his brother. “Alright, for tonight follow Brandon, he’ll take you to the guest cabin. It’s small but there’s food there a bed and a fire place.”

“Ah, thank you for your hospitality.” Fai bowed his head graciously.

“Don’t be thanking me yet, kiddo. We might look like a welcoming committee to you, but there’s all types around here. Just get some sleep for now, we’ll talk more in the morning.”

Kurogane snorted out a thanks and followed Brandon, his eyes narrowed as he looked at each person they passed on the way to the guest cabin. Of course he didn't trust it. How could he trust it? So when Brandon opened the door, Kurogane made sure to take every precaution before entering. 

He waited until Fai was in and the door was shut before he grumbled something and looked around again. "I know we didn't have any other option, but I don't trust this."

“We don’t have much of a choice.” Fai pulled off his shoes and left them by the entry way. The man didn’t lie. The cabin was sparse but there was a fire already going, a wash basin, a place to hang clothing, a place to do some minimalist cooking, and a bed. “For now I’m willing to trust what I see. And what I see is a place to eat, wash up, be warm, and sleep. Right now we can’t ask for more.”


	8. Metathesis

Kurogane wasn't really in the mood for arguing with Fai, so when the mage suggested they just take it for what it was, he grunted and checked the entire cabin. He might be stuck with it, but that didn't mean he wasn't going to make sure there weren't any traps or ways for someone to break in and kill them in their sleep.

Maybe he was being ridiculous, but he liked to think of it as being cautious and prepared. When he was satisfied with the stability of the walls, windows, and door, he stretched his arms over his head and waited until that tell-tale pop. With a groan, he looked at his companion and shook his head. "You should get some rest. I'll make us something to eat."

Everyone has their ways with coping. Kurogane’s was to make himself useful in assuming everyone was out to kill them, which in most cases that was true. Fai, on the other hand, started housekeeping. He filled a pail with water from the indoor pump and placed it over the fire, found a bowl, set the root inside to start crush it with the first sturdy spoon he found, and by the time Kurogane finished his checks, a perfect salve as was at the bottom. 

“I won’t stop you.” Fai placed the bowl at the end of the counter. “I’m going to wash up first.”

With no little effort he pulled the pail out of the fire after a satisfying test of its temperature. Being clean was going to feel just as good, if not better than a meal and a nap. After he filled the basin with the warm water, he tied his hair up, sat down on a stool and carefully started to peel the clothing off his body. It had barely been a day, but the fabric was stuck to him like a second skin, and he grimaced as it made a squelching sound when it parted from his flesh. Fai tossed the offending clothing aside, and with the first touch of fresh clean warm water to his neck, a gasp of pleasure parted his lips.

Kurogane watched Fai more intently than he should have, and it took all of his willpower to turn away from the mage's mostly-naked form to find something to make with what little was provided. An onion, some carrots and celery, some garlic, and a little, very well preserved bit of meat, and he started to make what would hopefully be some sort of edible stew. He tried to focus on cutting the vegetables even as Fai made that noise. He chopped even louder to drown out the sound, but he could only do so much with his hands wrapped.

He put the knife down, slowly started to unwrap the artificial hand, and blinked. The inner workings were no longer exposed; the synthetic flesh had repaired itself. He lifted his hand to get a better look at it in the light, clenching and unclenching his fingers and watching the way everything moved as though he hadn't damaged it in the first place. "What the hell...?" He turned to Fai again, holding out his hand so the other man could see his palm. "Look."

“What?” Fai dropped the wash towel and laid out a fresh one for Kurogane before he stood up. “Oh? It’s...” His head cocked to an angle as he walked forward, his hands busying themselves by tying a larger towel about his waist. When he approached the ninja he gently took his arm. The fake flesh and tangled synthetic gore that arm had been was cleaned away, as if someone had taken a cloth and just wiped the prosthetic down. “Interesting.” Slender fingers moved over the newly formed flesh, feeling for a difference between the old and the new. 

Kurogane watched Fai, his eyes remaining locked on his face as the mage's fingers moved over his palm. "It's like I never cut it..." He lowered his voice a little, due to their proximity, and he found himself leaning in just slightly. "Does it feel weird...?"  
“No. It feels like it should.” Fai turned the arm around, momentarily forgetting that it was attached to another person, and his fingertips tested the flesh of his palm, sliding over the lines and admiring the detail of the artistry that went into the flesh. It had all come back, right down to the finely etched prints. “That’s amazing. If we make it back to Piffle you’ll have to thank her. It’s a machine that rebuilds itself.” The researcher in him was awed by it. The man in him was jealous of the person ‘her’ implied. Love and dedication went into that craft, and there was no denying that. The type of love wasn’t so much a factor as how deep it ran. Tomoyo’s feelings of kinship with her warrior were a connection that ran through the souls that joined all versions of her together. It too was awe inspiring. 

The ninja murmured a little at the soft touches on his skin. This was definitely some form of torture wasn't it? "Hey..." He slowly pulled his hand back and looked at the mage, his eyes moving as he gazed at the other man, looking at the line of his jaw, down his neck, and over his exposed chest before he lifted them again. "Aren't you cold....?"

“No.” Fai’s answer was short but not blunt. He grew up in an ice world and spent decades exposed the elements, he’d all but forgotten what ‘cold’ felt like, but Kurogane’s question did make him aware of his state of dress, or lack thereof. “Oh, I washed the clothes I took from the apartment. I don’t have anything else.”

"Ah." Of course he hadn't noticed it. He was too busy cutting and checking on his hand to see that Fai had washed his clothes. It made Kurogane more aware of his own state of disarray. His clothes were also in need of a cleaning, as was his body, he was sure, and with one hand still cut up, he knew he was going to have to ask Fai to help him, as much as he'd hate to rely on him for it. "Let me finish getting the food ready to cook in that pot on the fire, and then I need to wash up."

The mage nodded his head and moved aside for him to pass. “I’ll get it ready for you.” Fai went to the wash area and made sure the water was still warm and clean before pouring it into the basin for him. “I’ll help you and clean the wound on your hand.” Fai was the closest thing to a doctor either one of them was probably going to get.

Kurogane finished cutting up the vegetables and the meat, dumping it into the cooking pot and adding just enough water before he settled it over the fire. When he was done, he looked at Fai and shrugged. The food would need quite a bit of time to cook, so at least there would be enough time to wash up. "I don't think I cut it too deeply, but I won't argue."

“Wouldn’t do you any good anyway. Sit,” Fai pointed to the stool by his legs, his other hand sinking a wash rag into the basin and wringing it out.

The ninja grunted and sat where he was told, his back to Fai. He looked down at his own knees and shook his head a bit. "Yeah yeah,"

“You’re so put upon,” Fai carefully lifted up the back of Kurogane’s shirt. “Arms up,” He tossed it aside with a dull thump and started to wash over the man’s neck. He kept his touch gentle but hard enough to wash away the day's dirt, grime, and blood.

"Tch." The ninja muttered, but moved as Fai needed him to move, bowing his head and staring down at his hands, his arms resting over his knees. "Don't take too much pleasure in scraping my skin raw."

Fai laughed softly. “Well if you knew how to stay clean…”

Ivory hands got a little softer as they moved over his back, and up Kurogane’s broad shoulders. He took note of the scars that marred his tan skin. They were little payments for each lesson and each failure: a subtle reminder of the differences between training with a blade and training with a book. Fai was no stranger to combat, but he grew up in a castle where he was only bruised by staves and poked by blunt swords, with everyone too scared to draw blood from Ashura’s charge. 

As he came over his shoulder he walked around him, kneeling between his legs to get under his neck and over his chest. More scars, more memories. Lost in thought Fai traced one pronounced marking with a tip of his finger.

Kurogane tilted his head a little and watched Fai as he moved in front of him, arching a brow when the mage started moving his fingers in a way that wasn't exactly conducive to cleaning. Like the image of the other man kneeling between his legs wasn't enough to drive the ninja mad, the touches certainly did nothing to help his willpower.

He grabbed Fai's hand and pulled it just a bit away from his flesh, his eyes narrowing slightly, but not from anger. Instead, he lifted the mage's hand to his mouth and brushed his lips over the slender fingers. "You're pretty bad at staying focused."

Delicate fingers twitched at the touch of Kurogane’s lips, the fog of thoughts lifted from his eyes as looked up the ninja, and his hand turned to cup his cheek. “Can the thing you’re focused on also distract you from it?” His hand with the towel lowered to other’s stomach. He could feel the curves of his muscles and there was a strange tenseness that had them drawn taught.

"Depends on what's distracting you," Kurogane grinned and let his tongue come out to flick against the top of one of Fai's fingers. "Because I doubt washing me is the distracting part, but it is what you were supposed to be focused on."

Maybe it was because he was both physically and mentally drained. Maybe it was because he lacked the ability to muster up even the barest hint of resistance, but the feel of Kurogane’s tongue teasing his fingers sent a jolt straight to Fai’s core as if it were connected to a more intimate part of him. Shivers followed in its wake and manifested in tingles to his cheeks. 

"Something wrong?" The ninja knew damn well what he did, and what it was doing to Fai, but he would be damned to admit it. So he dropped the mage's hand and smirked just a bit. "Should I stop distracting you?"

Kurogane certainly had a mean streak, but Fai couldn’t bring himself to play along, at least not completely. “I need to finish cleaning you,” So even as his flesh flushed, he pulled gently at the waist band of man’s pants. “Off.” Besides, he didn’t need to play along when he had his own game in mind.

Oh, is that how it was going to be? Kurogane lifted his hips a bit so Fai could yank down his pants. "Then continue."

In mock exasperation Fai hooked his fingers into his pants and his boxers and pulled them down. He threw both of them to the side as he started to wash down one leg, then up the other, his eyes avoiding that one part of Kurogane until the cloth started to rub over his inner thigh. He could feel Kurogane’s heat, and his scent started to overpower his own will as he leaned in. The towel came to the ninja’s shaft and started to rub gently as the mage’s lips began to move over the sensitive flesh of his thigh. 

Kurogane couldn't say he didn't expect this, and so he felt himself growing in anticipation. Each time Fai got closer, he got hotter, until that touch was there. "Oh...you're going to wash that for me too?" He chuckled, he couldn't help it. It was a way to hide the slight pitch in his voice when he felt the mage brush his lips over his thigh.

He lowered his artificial hand to rest on Fai's head, careful not to put too much pressure as he threaded his fingers into his hair.

Fai moaned against his flesh as he felt his hand push into his hair. He could almost feel the artificial heat move from the back of his skull and down his spine, and even in that he could feel a gentle urging. There was no doubt what Kurogane wanted, and had wanted for a long time, so who was he to deny him a desire like this?

He let the cloth drop to the floor and shifted to lift himself up on his knees as he trailed his lips from his thigh and replaced them with his hands to either side, kneading the flesh as he took his first taste. It was a slow indulging lick up one side of his heat before he filled himself with him.

Fai wasn’t a stranger to this, but it had been almost half a century since his last male lover and he never remembered the sensation being like this. Kurogane was desire, heat, passion, aggression, and all that came with being a man. It intoxicated the mage, and he moaned around him as his hand glided up the ninja’s body. The more he tasted the more he wanted to feel.

It was almost too much. The vibrations caused Kurogane to moan, and he looked down at Fai with what had to be the most intense hunger in his eyes. He had been on edge all day, more so when that stupid asshole implied that he had a more intimate relationship with the mage than the ninja did, so he was going to make sure that by the end of the night, Fai was his and no one else's.

That look. It was as much a turn on as it was terrifying, and it was a heady concoction that joined with the already boiling confection of sensations that were rolling with Fai’s mind and body. His arm came around Kuro’s waist, pulling him closer so he could take more. Feeling the ninja’s hunger as if it were his own and begging to sate it.

That was it. That was all it took for Kurogane to groan and grip Fai's hair as he let out a soft sound and released. Sure, he didn't last as long as he would have liked, but given how long it had been, and how desperately he wanted and needed this, he could hardly be blamed, could he? His eyes cleared a bit as he came down from that high, and his chest heaved just slightly, gasping for the air he needed to catch his breath.

Fai laid his head against Kurogane’s thigh, licking his lips of the salty taste of his pleasure as he watched him surrender to the afterglow of climax. It was probably the first time the man allowed himself to surrender to anything, and Fai was basking in the knowledge that he had brought him there. The way his flush colored his skin, how his chest moved with his breath, the way his eyes shown like darkened rubies in the fire light, it was Fai that put him in that state.

Kurogane's head moved as laziness started to set in. He could see that slight bit of pride in Fai's eyes, so he let his fingers move over his cheek. "Hey..." He managed as he started to finally catch his breath. "You didn't have to be that thorough." He managed to grin a bit even though he knew that there was something still lingering between them; a fire that needed to be doused.

Fai chuckled softly as he nuzzled his hand like a content kitten. “I’m always thorough.” He kissed at his fingertips as they passed languidly over his lips.

"Are you...?" Kurogane grinned. "I don't feel very clean now, though."

“No? I’m pretty sure I got it all.” The Mage straightened his back as he sat up. “Nope, didn’t miss a drop.” His eyes glittered as he teased.

"Yes, but now I'm a bit sweaty." Kurogane smirked and touched Fai's jaw. "You look a little heated, too."

That was an understatement. Fai felt like he was burning from the inside out. His loins ached, and every touch from Kurogane’s hand sent another of those jolts through his body. “Nnn.” He murmured in agreement as he closed his eyes.

"I'll help you..." Kurogane slowly trailed his fingers down along Fai's neck, smirking at the way the other man moved at his touch. "But I can't until my wound is cleaned..."

“Wound? Cleaned?” Dazed blue eyes looked up at the bigger man as if he were speaking in tongues, before it dawned on him. “Oh!” The haze left his brain long enough for him stand up and get the ointment he made and a few more strips of cloth before he sat back down on one Kurogane’s legs, knowing that his weight would be little to nothing for the man. 

“Your hand, please?”

Kurogane held out his injured hand to him. The leaf Fai had used earlier was starting to look worse. It was browning in a few places, and the sap from before had made it rather sticky right where the wound was. He let his other hand come to rest on Fai's back, holding him steady as best he could.

If he had been able to use healing magic this would have been dealt with hours ago, but as it was he was stuck relying on his apothecary studies. The knowledge was a fine substitution for innate powers, but it wasn’t a quick fix. He carefully removed the leaf and bent his hand up to the light. “I’ll have to check it in the morning, it’s not as bad as it could be, but not as good as I would like it to be.”

He cleaned the wound with the warmed water and applied more of the salve. He was gentle and mindful of the more tender flesh even as he wrapped it with the strips of clean linen he had found in one of the drawers. “This should do for now.”

"Thanks." It already felt better, but Kurogane figured Fai would understand that. When the other man was done, he lifted his injured hand, his fingers brushing over Fai's cheek just slightly. "It's fine."

“Mmm.” Fai kissed at one sword calloused fingertip as he closed his eyes. “Don’t climb any trees for a few days. Doctor’s orders, Kurosama.” When his sparkling sapphires opened once again they were fixed on Kurogane’s. Drying tuffs of blond hair started to curl up at his cheeks and move gently in the drafts the cabin gave entrance to.

"Don't think I'll need to climb anything for the next few days." Those fingers remained on that porcelain neck, and he leaned in, closing the distance between them as he pressed his lips to Fai's.

“Then behave and-“ The mage’s voice trailed off until Kurogane’s lips completely silenced him, his own hand coming up to curl over the one at his neck as he tilted his head back further.

"You want me to behave?" He whispered against Fai's lips. "That means I shouldn't do that again."

“When have you ever listened to me?” Fai looked at the space between their lips before he closed the distance again. His kiss was starved, and desperate carrying with it all the pains and evils of the day that he wanted Kurogane to make go away. ‘Let me drown in you.’ He begged silently.

Kurogane's hand pressed against Fai's back and pulled him that much closer to his chest. He took his lips in another heated kiss, his eyes starting to close, but stopping before they did, so he could take in the sight of the mage.

They broke away to breathe, Fai’s head slipping down to rest against Kurogane’s shoulder and he smiled when he saw a little scar there. “I remember this.” He leaned in and kissed the scar he left Kurogane once. At the time it was done out of spite and vampiric hunger. Now he kissed it gently as if trying to erase that moment.

A soft little groan escaped the ninja's lips. "I should hope that you'd remember it," he said softly, his eyes opening again. "You have no idea what you did to me then, do you?"

“Exactly what I intended to do at the time. Aggravate you to the point of hating me,” Fai supposed he should have considered himself lucky that is efforts had the opposite effect. He hadn’t taken into the account that it was too late for both of them, even by then. 

"You failed miserably at that you know. You aren't the only one who could put on a show." Kurogane looked at the mage and shook his head. His artificial hand took one of Fai's and pressed it on his own chest so the mage could feel how his heartbeat. "You injured me pretty severely. You turned me cold, but also hot whenever you drank. But that particular instance was the worst."

The blond turned his head into the crook of the bigger man’s neck while his eyes focused down to where their hands were held. It was amazing, that bioengineered arm. It was real flesh and real warmth encasing the finery of metal workings, cogs, wires, pistons, and cold science. What Fai wouldn’t give to spend an hour in Piffle’s labs. Science and magic were one in the same depending on which theories you believed in, but any mage worth their salt knew they couldn’t exist without it. Both ways of thought broke down the universe and put it back together again with a few changes here and there to suit the user’s needs. Magic wouldn’t exist without science, one within the other like hands made perfectly to hold the other. 

“I know,” Fai said at last as he reigned in his thoughts. “I thought, in that brief instant, how easily I could end it. I was supposed to kill you anyway. I thought that every time I fed from you. I could have finished it. Stopped everything, but I never could. I still needed someone to take me away and someone to save me.” 

"You say that, but I wouldn't have let you kill me any more than I would have let you die." The ninja kept Fai's hand against his chest. The less they talked about something so upsetting the better, so he leaned in and tried to take Fai's mind off of the past with an almost desperately hot kiss.

Fai was thankful for that kiss and the longer he drowned himself in it the further away that dark shore became. He wouldn’t run from his past but he knew he shouldn’t focus on it. It was their run in with Telam that brought all that to the surface, every time that man pulled them up he would feel those memories all over again and he had a feeling that if they ever came to some physical manifestation they wouldn’t be so lucky to see heart imprinted feathers. So when Kurogane crushed his lips against Fai’s he accepted them with all the need of a man clinging to his last vestige of hope.

Kurogane let go of Fai's hand when the other man responded to his kiss, but pulling his arm away from where it was wedged between them, meant he could pull the mage closer, and so he did. He was still bothered by what he heard this morning, and he definitely didn't like the idea of anyone 'becoming one' with Fai if it wasn't him, so he needed to remedy that, and quickly too before one or both of them got lost in whatever world this was.

“The bed,” Fai’s throaty voice whispered as he broke away, not to breathe but to put a voice to the ninja’s thoughts.

"Fine." It took very little effort to lift Fai and carry him to the bed, and so the instant he was there, Kurogane took the mage's lips again as he pressed him back into the mattress.

As his shoulders were pressed into bed his mind become blank of anything but the man over him. Fai didn’t care about the spring that was hitting his back, he didn’t give a thought for the musky scent that wafted up as the bed creaked in protest of their weight, and he didn’t see the crumbling of old wooden walls just inches behind his head. All he knew was Kurogane’s touch as his leg settled between his own, he knew the scent of his desire as he came in to kiss him once more, and he saw the hunger the mirrored is own in those deep red eyes.

“Kurosama,”

Kurogane looked down at the man beneath him. He knew Fai was this strong, completely capable person, but right now with his cheeks flushing slightly and that blond hair fanned out around his head, all the ninja saw was someone who wanted this, maybe even needed this, just as much as he did. "Hm?" He leaned in again, only this time his lips came to the mage's jaw, slowly dragging against that soft edge. His real hand, bandaged as it was, rested gently against one of Fai's hips, holding him without too much pressure. He shifted slightly, using his thigh to press up more and push the other man's legs apart just a bit more.

“Ah,” Fai gasped, releasing a syllable of pleasure as his hands reached under Kurogane’s arms to touch his back. His fingertips trailed over the flesh of his shoulders, one stray digit finding the tender flesh where his arm and body connected. Another person might not of noticed, and Fai wondered about a few ‘could have been’ lovers in the ninja’s history that would have even taken note. Fai had spent half a decade studying him, watching the way his body would move. The way it would tense and relax. The way every flex of muscle told its own history and how such trained impulses would react and accept the foreign implement. No, no one else but Fai would understand how to appreciate the body that was over him.

Kurogane definitely noticed. Fai seemed to have some sort of fetish for his fake arm. He was always fascinated by it, studying the flesh and the way it moved. He had a tendency to look at it or touch it more than normal, so the ninja supposed this would be no exception. When he felt that finger slide along the flesh where man met machine, he grunted a little, his eyes narrowing just enough to draw Fai's attention. Well, it was that or the way he rubbed his thigh between the other man's legs.

The pressure of Kurogane’s leg pressing again him broke into his mind as the mage whimpered again. He cursed his wandering thoughts. He didn’t need to think about lovers that would never be. He was the one here. Right now. With him.

A slim hand came around to touch the side of Kurogane’s face, cupping his cheek while a thumb moved against his lower lip. They were surprisingly soft to touch, and sweet to taste, he mused as he leaned up to kiss him again.

Kurogane's tongue flicked out when the touch came to his lips, and it was just as well. When Fai kissed him, he took the opportunity to push closer, letting his tongue distract the mage as the hand he had placed on his hip moved over the top of his thigh and between his legs to push them open that much more.

“Kurosama,” Fai spread his legs at the other’s urging, the towel that had been keeping his modesty started to lift and pull apart where he had tucked one end in. It wasn’t the first time the ninja had seen him exposed but this time, even including back at Seichiriou’s room, felt different. 

Normally he would find this sort of situation to be a bit untrustworthy. Here they were, in some strange place, in some random cabin while the stew simmered over the fire. He didn't know any of the people outside, and he should be on edge about that, but he wasn't. He didn't care. The only thing he cared about was the way his fingers gripped the edge of that towel and pulled it away from Fai's body. If Kurogane was already naked, it was only fair that they both were, right?

Fai let his hands slip down to lay to either side of his head as the larger man laid him bare. The drafts in the cabin kissed his heated flesh with their cold tendrils of air making him shiver but moan at the same time. He watched Kurogane’s expression as he exposed to him, wondering what the man would see when looked at him like this. No barriers, no walls, no jokes, just him.

Kurogane looked, probably longer than he should have. His eyes slowly made their way down his body, taking in everything. Sure, Fai had only been in the towel, but now that he was fully undressed, looking seemed that much better. But he didn't just look. He rested both of his hands on Fai's thighs and pushed them open enough to slide his body between them, his own heated flesh rubbing against the mage's when he settled down and crushed his lips with another hot kiss.

The longer Kurogane stared at him and said nothing, the more anxious Fai was getting. What if he was too thin? What if he was realizing that he couldn’t go this far with man after all? Fai was never the self-conscious type, but laying under the scrutinizing eyes of someone you actually loved had an amazing effect on the mind, and it wasn’t all good until he kissed him.

“Mmmph!” Fai moaned between their lips, his legs spreading wider to fit Kurogane comfortably between them and then closing about his hips. He wasn’t going to let him go now. There would be no laying him to sleep, and no excuses. The pain is body was still prevalent but he had long pushed it aside to succumb to both of their needs. He pressed his hips up, grinding his groin against the ninja. 

The only sound Kurogane made was the sharp intake of air. His hands slid up along Fai's thighs to hold his hips and he pressed himself closer, adding a bit more friction to their movements.

The bed creaked under them, accented by the sound of pants and pitched whimpers. One of the mage’s hands pressed against Kurogane’s shoulder as the other reached above himself, blindly looking for something to hold on to. He had to ground himself lest he be swallowed up by the pleasure that was taking over his body. His nails found a part of the wall and started to dig in. “K-kurogane!” 

Kurogane watched him, his eyes narrowing at the way Fai moved and whimpered beneath him. If this is what it was like now, what was it going to be like when he was actually thrusting into him? The thought made him harder than he was, if that was possible, and his eyes darkened. He lifted one hand from Fai's hips to slide up his side, and up that arm that was currently above his head. "Don't break the wall." His voice came out as a strangled groan as he tried to get the words out.

“The wall is the last thing I’m worried about.” Fai panted in response, but he let go and gripped Kurogane’s hand instead. The move was instinctive, but at the same time seemed more intimate than what the rest of their bodies were doing. He turned his head up to Kurogane, his own eyes dark and wide with a mixture of emotion in their depths. Fear, excitement, vulnerability, and trust swirled in those fathomless pools of blue.

The ninja folded his fingers between Fai's once the mage grabbed his hand. He should be holding onto him, not some inanimate object. "This is better." He whispered, leaning in and letting his lips trail along Fai's cheek until he reached his mouth, taking it again, but not closing his eyes so the other man could see those exact emotions reflected back at him.

First instinct was to pull away. It was too much, and that scared child inside of him called out screaming that it was only going to end up hurting him. If he allowed himself to feel everything it would crush him. The sensation was the last ruins of the man he once was: the outgoing shut-in that was afraid to get close to anyone. But his hand tightened around Kurogane’s as hips kept moving, trying to get their bodies closer until one soft little word came past his lips. “Please.”

He lifted his head a bit when Fai squeezed his hand a little tighter. For a moment, he thought the mage was going to throw him off him, but that soft word caused him to smile, and he leaned back down to kiss him again. As gentle as the kiss was, his hips began to move in a bit more urgency. Soon he wasn't going to be able to handle this.

It was in that moment with his eyes closed tightly and his head arched over the back the pillow that Fai came. Heat flashed through his body, uncoiling as his body bowed from the bed.

When he felt Fai tense beneath him, Kurogane couldn't help but grin. He did this. No one else. And so he pulled his body up just enough to let Fai have the moment he needed to come down from that high. There was more he wanted, but he needed to make sure the mage was ready for him.

“Kurosama,” The nickname fell drunkenly off Fai’s kissed bruised lips as he settled back into the bed. Tomorrow his body would hate him, and he would accept that, but right now he wanted Kurogane closer to him. “Too far away.” He pouted while lifting himself up to one elbow, his other hand still firmly held by the ninja.

"I can't get any closer just yet." He spoke softly and watched the way Fai moved. His brows furrowed just slightly. Was the mage in any pain? Probably, since his body had hurt so much before. Should he keep going or should he stop? Would they get another chance like this if he did stop? He shook his head a bit and leaned in to kiss him, trying to push away those thoughts. Stopping now would hurt him more.


	9. Synthesis

The delicate medley of smells started to fill the room as with the earthen scent of softening potatoes, cured meat, and sharp onions. It served as a moment’s distraction while his eyes focused on the pot over the fire, before he felt the press of Kurogane’s lips against his skin. Fai allowed the sensation to overpower anything else as he squeezed the hand that still held him.  
  
He was surprisingly gentle, as lovers go. Every touch from him was less needy and more exploratory. It wasn’t the fumbling curiosity of a virgin, no that wouldn’t have been ninja’s style, but it was as if every touch had the opportunity to make Fai crack. Like a man testing the ice before letting his full weight go out upon it. It was maddening.  
  
Fai brought up his other hand, pushed it into the short black threads of the other’s hair,  and pulled gently, purposefully as he brought his head down for a heated kiss. Kurogane couldn’t break something that was already broken.

Kurogane murmured softly against Fai's lips. The mage couldn't possibly know how good it felt to have his hand in his hair like that, could he? Or maybe he did, and this was just a way of making Kurogane hotter. It worked. 

He slid his artificial hand up over Fai's hip, holding him steady as he broke the kiss. He looked down at the other man through narrowed eyes, if only to keep himself from taking too much in at once, and when he leaned in again, he placed kisses along that soft jaw. His hips pushed forward a little to increase the contact of skin against skin, so Fai could feel the heat that pulsed through him. "Hey," he whispered when his lips came to the mage's earlobe, tongue flicking out to taste the flesh. "Are you sure about this?"  
  
If there was a phrase, a spell, or a touch in any world that could make Fai lose himself, Kurogane just found it. The feel of his lips moving over the tender flesh of his ear, his hot breath blowing against the sensitive hairs, and his voice with its rumbling baritones sent tremors deep into his core. Words left him and in their place came a pitched desperate sound that bordered on the realm of a beg and a demand.  
  
"I'll take that as a yes." Kurogane whispered into Fai's ear, and he couldn't help the grin that came to his face at the smaller man's reaction. Who knew that such a simple thing would melt Fai into a puddle of neediness? He would have to remember this; it would come in quite handy if the mage ever got too mouthy and obnoxious. His tongue slid along the shell of Fai's ear and he chuckled softly, just enough for the sound to pass his lips. The hand he had on the mage's hip remained there, but the other moved, fingers trailing along the top of his thigh and under, gripping lightly as he pressed his body forward, and while rubbing against him again was not going far enough, but if he could get Fai to react, it would be a good start.  
  
Fai turned his head obediently for the other man, exposing more of the white tender flesh to his ministrations. And then there was that touch under him; a bolt of light crossed his vision, and to the unspoken command, his hips lifted from the bed, one long leg hooking around Kurogane’s waist to hold himself up against him.  
  
“Mnph!” This was the part where he normally shut down and let his lover take over, but he didn’t allow himself that. Fai wouldn’t let himself be drowned out or fade away into sensation. Kurogane was the one touching him, Kurogane was the one whose heat pressed against the smooth flesh of his inner thigh, and it was Kurogane that closed off every part of their world but them.   
  
Even as the wound in his shoulder burned and his body screamed from his bones, desperate to drag him away, they were nothing but pale memories compared to the desire of the man over him.

Although Fai didn't seem to react when he put more weight on his shoulder than before, Kurogane knew that had to have hurt, and he knew he should stop and let them both calm down so they could eat the stew that was slowly cooking over the fire. He knew they should clean up and go to bed and get as much rest as they could before the morning. But he also knew this was not likely to happen again. He knew that if he didn't go through with this, there would be even more tension than usual, and later it would distract them more than it was distracting them now.

That didn't mean he had to let Fai suffer during this though, so he lifted his head and looked down at him. He watched the way the heat flushed the mage's cheeks, and the way his lips trembled just slightly. It made him smile. Not the normal, sarcastic smirk he usually allowed the other to see, but a genuine smile. "Look at me." He murmured. "Keep looking at me..."  
  
Something far away from the desire of his body broke with that smile. Kurogane was a lot of things; strong, fast, grumpy, kind, honest, and in that moment he was truly handsome. Not the type of handsome that one would say of a clean shaven man, draped in charm, but the kind of handsome that was effortless. It was a smile like that could have made any woman swoon and any man look twice. Fai had always joked about how Kurogane needed to be friendlier, or how he should try to smile more, but now that he’d seen it, he didn’t want to share it.

“You’re the only thing I see,” Fai’s fingers moved from the other’s hair to touch those gently curved lips. And in case it needed to be said he whispered. “I want you.”

Even at the touch to his lips, Kurogane's smile remained. "Do you?" He kissed those fingertips. "Then I guess I can allow that." He slid his hands up to Fai's waist, and he pulled him up, shifting his body so while he was sitting, the other man was straddling his lap. This time he would let the mage go at his own pace. Kurogane knew he would get too into it, and with Fai's injuries, he was afraid he would only make it worse. This was an appropriate solution, wasn't it? Besides, the thought of watching Fai move was enough to make Kurogane hotter for it.

And Fai indulged him. He lowered his hand between their bodies and found Kurogane’s heat. It seemed bigger than it had been just moments ago on the chair, but that only said the ninja needed this as badly as the mage did. He wouldn’t make either of them wait any longer. Carefully he lined him up and slowly pushed his weight down.  
  
“Aha!” _Slower, slower_. Fai had to remind himself. They were lacking the necessities that made entry far smoother, like patience, but the body could handle it as long it’s allowed to grow accustomed. It required him to trust Kurogane not to lose it, at least not yet. But gods he was so hot and he could feel the ninja’s pulse rushing through him almost as if it were his own.   
  
Kurogane hissed slightly when Fai pushed himself down. It caught him completely off guard, though he didn't know what he was expecting after shifting their position like this. His first concern was how much that had actually hurt Fai. The whole point of shifting was to keep him in as little discomfort as possible, but the mage was impatient, and the raw friction and burning heat was just an indication of that.  
  
His hands gripped Fai's hips, but he did well not to dig his fingers into that silken white flesh. Instead, he bit his own lip as a strangled moan escaped his throat.  
  
“Shhh. I know.”  A raspy voice broke from Fai’s labored breathing as he tried to comfort the other man. Concentration furrowed his brow before he pushed the last of the way down and  his head laid against Kurogane’s shoulder. It hurt, there wasn’t going to be any denying that, but it wasn’t like he didn’t know what he was doing, or that he had expected this to result in no pain. “Just give me a moment.”  
  
Seconds stretched out like torturous minutes before that slight frame started to move. His body relaxed as it grew used to intrusion and with every small move of his hips the pain started to dissipate and Fai was becoming more and more aware of who was inside him.

Another groan escaped when the mage's hips moved, and Kurogane stopped biting his lip when he tasted blood. It was too much, but not enough at the same time. It was more than he anticipated, but not completely unlike what he expected. He knew if this ever happened, it would be like everything else between them. Pain and pleasure. At the very base level, that's what it was, but this was more than that. This was raw emotion in physical form. Years of never quite becoming something, and then becoming it all at once.

"Don't stop looking at me." He managed. The fingers of his real hand digging in just a little, but he was careful not to do the same with the synthetic one. He still didn't know his own strength when it came to that arm, and while the thought of leaving finger-shaped bruises on the mage's hips only solidified the desire to make Fai his, he wasn't keen on hurting him any more than he already had.  
  
“Nm.” A new scent filled the air and it threatened to tip Fai over the edge of what little patience he had left. Kurogane’s blood. Sweet life giving blood. He wasn’t a vampire any more but one’s body never forgets a scent like that, and as he straightened his back, he took the ninja’s jaw into his hand and tilted it up so he could meet his lips in a crushing kiss. The hint of iron on his tongue drove the blonde’s hips to move faster while fingers gripped the back of Kurogane’s hair keeping him locked against him. Something darker stirred in the back of the mages mind. Something instinctual and buried over the past few years was trying to claw its way to the surface.

Darkened eyes watched Fai as best they could given their proximity. His lips moved against the mage's a bit roughly, though the cut on his lip stung a bit with the pressure placed on it. He kept a firm hold on Fai's hips, allowing his own to thrust up to meet him now that the mage seemed to set some pace.

Moans blended into whimpers and were accented by pitched gasps, flesh moved against flesh melting and melding to becoming one person. Fai couldn’t find himself with in the construct of desire that the two of them had become. It was single monument to years of denial, stolen glances, hate, and love.  
  
“Aha!” Fai’s neck arched back as Kurogane found that spot inside of him, and their gaze broken for only a moment before his eyes found their purchased once more. They were so dark with arousal the blue was nearly black where the barest hints of his magic would spark and fade within them. He gained more control of their movements, rolling his hips so the ninja could hit that spot again and again. “A-almost.”  
  
Kurogane's groans were more like grunts as he moved to keep even with Fai. His hand slid from the mage's hip to curl around his heat, adding even more friction to the way their bodies rocked together. He was close, and he knew the other man must be, too, so he wanted to make sure that they hit that edge and tumbled over it together, or as close together as they could.  
  
“Kurogane!” One last cry of his name, one last push to show how that hand gave way to his breaking point and he pleasure over powered him. White, molten pleasure struck upon every ending of his nerves and spilled forward into Kurogane’s hand. He lost his ability to focus on anything but the heat still moving inside of him, and without his concentration to keep it at bay his magic start to manifest in the form a azure glow behind his eyes.  
  
If he wasn't too busy feeling, Kurogane's lips would have curled into a self-satisfied smirk at Fai's pleasure coming over him. But as it was, it was all he could do to keep from yelling out when his own climax came. His hips bucked as he finished, claiming Fai completely, and the heat spread throughout his whole body. Sure, he had felt this before, but not with such intensity and such completion.   
  
And as he came down, and his chest heaved as his lungs tried to fill with air, he looked at the mage. He uncurled his hand and lessened the grip on Fai's hip as he carefully pulled himself out of him.  
  
“Mn..” Fai mewled softly as he was left empty but still feeling the remnants of Kurogane’s pleasure inside of him. Carefully he laid his head into the crook of the larger man’s shoulder and his lips moved to take up the sweat from his exertion up on his lips.  He felt his own as it made it darkened his own to a burnt honey shade as it clung to his neck and collar.  
  
How long could they stay like this? Kurogane tilted his head a little to rest against the top of Fai's, his eyes half-closing as he allowed himself to relax, even just for a moment. One hand moved and lazily rubbed the mage's back a little, and he smiled another one of those genuine smiles.   
  
Maybe it would be years before they crashed together again, but at least Kurogane took comfort knowing that Fai was his.  
  
A thousand words could have been said, but it would have served no propose than to voice what the two of them already knew. So as their labored breaths became no more than gratified sighs, and Fai felt the power recede from his eyes,  he raised himself up, the fire glowing off his flesh. “Kurosama,” A pout pushed his lower lip out just enough for effect. “I’m hungry.”  
  
Kurogane rolled his eyes. That was what he wanted to say after everything that just happened? "You have to get up, then." He muttered, but made no move aside from a turn of his head to look at the pot of stew.  
  
Fai smiled sheepishly as he moved off the man’s lap, and it was no little effort. For the first time in a long time he felt cold as if the sudden absence of Kurogane's warmth took away a century of conditioning. But wasn’t that way with everything the man did to him? It didn’t matter to him how much time and effort Fai spent trying to build something up, the ninja would destroy it just by will alone.  
  
He pulled the blanket up around himself as he leaned back against the wall. It was a poor substitution, but it was something.  
  
When the weight shifted, Kurogane slid off the bed and walked to the fire. Normally he would put something on, but since his clothes were still drying, and Fai had taken the blanket, he stood there, naked. He knew Fai's eyes would be on him, and that made him smirk as he checked the stew and stirred it a little. "It's pretty much done." He murmured and glanced over his shoulder at the mage. "You want to eat there?"  
  
“You’re kidding right?” One eyebrow arched up as he pulled his eyes away from Kurogane’s back up to his face. It must be nice to be on the giving side of things and forget almost instantly what he had just put the other’s body through. A wry smirk curved his lips. “You didn’t leave me with much choice.” Now that the pleasure was fading and the adrenaline was dying down a dull throb was building up in Fai’s lower body.  
  
“Oh in that I had plenty of choice in action, just not in how fate decided to make you.” Fai nodded at the definitive proof of Kurogane’s masculinity. “Not that I’ll complain,” He reached out for the bowl and moved away from the wall leaving enough space for the other man to sit, and an invitation that was unspoken but obvious.  
  
Once Kurogane had gotten his own bowl, and he pulled the pot of stew off the fire, he sat in the space Fai left for him, letting the mage lean against him again, though eating would be awkward if he pressed too close to his chest. "When you're done, you need to get as much sleep as you can. Don't worry about anything else."

  
Fai left the man enough room to eat as he settled and allowed the larger man’s legs to cradle him. “I’ll be okay. We’ve been through worse things.” His shoulder throbbed as if trying to turn his words into a lie. “Tomorrow I’ll have you redress your hand and I’ll look over my shoulder.” He laughed then. What a sight they had to have been for this village. Muddy, bloody, broken, and unclean. No wonder they gave them shelter so quickly, they probably thought they were going to be picking up bodies by morning  
  
Kurogane grimaced a little at the reminder of their injuries, but he said nothing. He looked down at the stew and moved the pieces of vegetables and venison with his spoon before eating a little. At the very least, they needed to regain their strength because there was no way he was going to let Fai get injured again, and he absolutely would not let that ghost-skinned freak put his hands on his mage.  
  
Fai finished his bowl knowing that anything less would have left it open to the ninja’s scrutiny, and he set aside, shifting his weight  a little more so his back was against the other’s chest, his head pillowed by a bicep as he looked up at the other's face. Fai tried to convince himself a long time ago that Kurogane’s downfall was that he worried too much, or that he cared too much, and Fai was a person who didn’t have room to worry about others. It was amazing what you could try to tell yourself for the sake of self-preservation, if what he was doing could even be called that.

However, it was Kurogane’s worry and care that had become Fai’s weakness. He had never known grace but knew one could fall from it, and as he watched Kurogane’s face tense and relax as he ate, and he saw the faraway look in his eyes as if he were already focused on tomorrow, Fai wondered if grace was something you could fall into. As he pondered his eyes became heavy and lids started to drift shut even as he fought to keep them open if only for a little longer.

Kurogane had spent a bit too long overthinking about too much, and now Fai was practically asleep against him. His half-eaten stew was more cold than warm, but he somehow managed to finish it without disturbing the other man. After all this time, Fai still didn't really have a sense for time and place, did he? This wasn't going to be a comfortable way to spend the night, and if he made the injury worse?

He dropped the spoon into the bowl and slowly shifted it from one hand to the other, outstretching his free arm to place it on the small table next to the bed. That done, he settled back against the wall and tilted his head up, eyes following the grain in the wood.

Fai murmured a small protest when the other man moved and some warmth was allowed to escape from the little cocoon he made for himself. Kurogane’s arms could easily envelop him, and when they did there was little else that felt safer. In this little part of the world, he left his guard down, tension released from his body and his face relaxed into elven fairness as he allowed his eyes to close completely. It wasn’t that he wanted to sleep, far from it; it was that he couldn’t do anything to stop it.

His eyes flickered down to Fai and he sighed a little. Yes, he absolutely was asleep now, so movement was beyond the question. If either of them needed rest, Fai was definitely the one who needed it more. He had been through more in the past day than he had to deal with in a long time, so Kurogane didn't blame him for passing out like that. He looked back up at the ceiling again and tried to relax, but at least one of them had to remain somewhat alert and vigilant. He still didn't trust this place, and he wasn't going to let anyone interfere with the mage's rest.

  
+++

Fai had forgotten what true sleep had felt like, and he regretted the stirring of his own body as he started to wake. First his eyes fluttered open to be greeted by the night. It was dark except for the dying glow of embers in the fire place and a few rays of silver moonlight that provided an area for the dust motes to dance in. Next his limbs woke up, stiff and sore and filled with every memory this place had given him since walking out of the portal. Then was the warmth behind him. An even breath blowing against his neck, and large hands sprayed out over his stomach.  
  
 _You certainly have to make it difficult for me, don’t you?_ The mage sighed softly as he carefully shifted and adjusted his body to escape the tender confines. That too was regrettable, but he needed to contact the shop and it was better to ask forgiveness than to beg for permission in this case.  
  
Kurogane was awake, not that he had really been sleeping. In a situation like this, he preferred to be stay alert and ready, so he tended to doze rather than sleep. The moment Fai moved away from him, though, his eyes opened. He said nothing, since he wasn't sure what the mage was doing, and he didn't want him to think he woke him with the movement.  
  
When Fai stood upright he stumbled forward, his hand gripping the bedpost to catch himself. Pain shot up from his back side, through his spine and to the tips of his fingers and toes. Patience was certainly a virtue he didn’t afford himself in the throes of passion and now his body was choosing to remind him of that along with everything else.  
  
The pain faded after a moment of held breath and he continued to where their clothing was drying. He took Kurogane’s shirt and threw it on over his head. He didn’t have to be perfect but talking to Watanuki should involve at least the respect of clothing, but he’d be damned if he was going to mess with the confines of his own clothing.

"What are you doing?" Kurogane kept his voice low, so that he didn't startle Fai too much. He continued to sit on the bed. "If it hurts, you shouldn't have gotten up."

He closed his eyes with a shake of his head. Fai knew the ninja was awake; he had hoped that his curiosity would outweigh his concern for a little longer. Instead of responding he whispered to himself, “Carefully now.”  
  
He had to slowly gather his power to him; it was like traversing a maze where any wrong turn would have forced his body to constrict him in a metaphysical vice.  It had been a long time since he had to focus this hard to call forth a window.

Finally, a soft blue light appeared in his hand and spread like a tear in space. The image was static at best, but the face that appeared and the shop in the background left no question as to what Fai was doing.

“Good Evening Watanukikun.”  
  
Kurogane groaned a little. "Damnit, idiot. At least warm me." Kurogane scrambled out of view of the window to the shop, muttering and reaching for his pants to yank them on. Fai really was in no condition to be doing this, was he? But he was a stubborn ass, and he would do it no matter how much Kurogane protested.

“Good Evening Faisan, Kuroganesan.” The pale child bowed his head as one might to their elders, and Fai knew it was more out of habit than any recognition of age. By now the boy was nearly 3 times the age of the ninja and still didn’t look any different from the first time they met. Yes the clumsy clueless expression had been replaced with the former time witches cat like expressions and a slightly haughty acknowledgement of the mysteries of the world, but unlike Yuuko this boy had a depth of loneliness behind those mismatched eyes. They were so alike, he and Syaoran. Alike enough that whenever Fai saw him it took everything he had not to try and comfort him. A price was a price after all.

“What would be so important you would risk contacting me in your condition?” Fai smiled softly at the genuine concern, and unvoiced acknowledgement that something had to be wrong for Fai to bother with contact himself rather than using Mokona.

Kurogane grunted a bit and stood up behind Fai. He would have put a shirt on, but since Fai was wearing it, he didn't have much choice. He rested a hand on the mage's back so he could lean on him, or steady himself if he needed to. But otherwise he remained silent. He knew this had to do with that ghostly bastard, Syaoran, and the manjuu, and Fai would be much more eloquent with is explanation than Kurogane would.

Fai explained the details of thus far, finding a comforting strength in the hand at his back. He almost expected a reaction from Watanuki, a blush, a stumble, anything but this boy had become almost too serious. The thought broke Fai’s heart once again, and when he finished his explanation he studied the youth as he absorbed it. His brow crinkled, and Fai couldn’t help but think of Clow. Yes he knew Clow. Any wizard, dream seer, mage, or sorceress worth their salt knew Clow. Perhaps not personally but they all felt his existence, a pull toward that one point in space and time. If magic was a religion Clow would be their god.  
  
“Worlds can be born within worlds; you have come across this before.” Fai nodded his head to the boy’s words. “I can help you.” He lifted a pale hand and a set of glasses lay gingerly in his palm as if he was expecting their call.  “These will help you see what wasn’t meant to be shown.”   
  
"The hell does that mean?" Kurogane frowned. He didn't like this new development. He was never one to trust things he couldn't sense, but here they were receiving something to help them see what they can't. He didn't like it. He didn't want to get sucked into something any more twisted than it already was. He just wanted to get the others and get the hell out of here.  
  
Fai shot the ninja a glance. It was a warning that stated this boy was under his protection. It wasn’t that he didn’t understand Kurogane’s urgency. Fai felt it too, but while he could have said whatever he wished to Yuuko, and Fai never batted an eye, Watanuki was different.

“It means,” Fai continued on the boy’s behalf. “They will show us a way out of here.” He turned his eyes gaze back on to the boy and his eyes instantly softened. “The price?”

“For glasses that show what can’t been seen? I will take a fabric that holds no form.”

Fai blinked just a few times before it dawned on him. “My clothes? Kurosama, if you will be so kind as to get them for me?” The weird clothing he had been wearing before had the capacity to mold to the wearers form, thus not having one of its own.  
  
"Whatever." Kurogane snapped and rolled his eyes. If the kid wasn't here, he'd tell Fai what he really thought about being scolded like that. If anyone else looked at him that way, he would have punched their face in. He pulled his hand from the mage's back and grabbed the clothes Fai needed, muttering under his breath. Fai really needed to learn how to be patient and not push himself beyond his limits. Earlier he did it, and now he was doing it again. He knew he shouldn't use his magic, and yet here he was.  
Without another word, he grabbed the cloth and held it out.  
  
Fai looked at the cloth and before he said a word there was a flash of light and aura around the window changed and it became clearer. “If you will, please pass it through Kuroganesan.” Came that soft ever gentile voice of the shop owner.  
  
Fai closed his eyes as he felt his power recoil back into his flesh. Watanuki had overridden his magic with his own to allow the transfer to take place, and as for now it was all Fai could do to keep himself upright.  
  
“I want to give you these as well.” Fai opened his eyes to see two small black pill shaped objects appear beside the glasses. “This should help with your condition.”  
  
Kurogane wordlessly passed the cloth along, taking the objects from Watanuki and placing them on the small bedside table. He made no eye contact with anyone, only stepping back and putting his hand on Fai's back again. He glanced at the pills and frowned, but otherwise made no other indication of acknowledgement or reaction.

“Thank you.” Fai whispered softly and in kind the young sorcerer bowed his head as the window to Japan blinked out. Once the last thing keeping him standing was no longer present, the blonde’s slender frame collapsed into the lager man, clinging to his arm like a desperate cat on a tree limb.

Without any real effort, Kurogane picked Fai up and laid him down on the bed. "Idiot." He muttered before stepping away and shaking his head.

“It’s all I can do,” Fai whispered as he laid back. “for them.”

"Doesn't make you any less of an idiot." The ninja grumbled. "Now you need to sleep again. Don't even think about arguing with me, or I'll knock you out myself."

“Yeah, yeah Kuropapa,” Fai couldn’t resist. “Can I see one of the pills?”

 Kurogane grabbed one of the mugs from the cabinet and pumped a bit of water into it before he brought it over and picked up a pill from the table. He handed it to Fai before helping him sit up so he could drink the water if he needed it.

Fai looked over the pill closely. “Obsidian dust,” He remarked to no one in particular. “It can be used to draw out toxins in the blood.” He took the pill with the aid of the water, handing the cup back over to Kurogane when it was emptied. “It takes a while to work but I should be mobile by tomorrow.”

"You'd be more mobile if you were more patient..." Kurogane muttered as he put the cup back. He knew he was also to blame for Fai's inability to walk, but Fai was the one who overdid it. "Just sleep."

“And your bedside manner could use a bit of improvement.” A long pause stretched out between the two of them. “He didn’t take a payment for that.” And he let those words hang in the space between.


	10. Extraneous Variable

The sun filtered through the old, moth-eaten curtains, casting spotty light on the floor. Kurogane opened his eyes when he heard several birds chirp, but he didn't move just yet. Instead, he turned his head slightly to watch Fai, mostly to make sure he was still sleeping, but also to see if he looked like he was in pain, or if that wound in his shoulder reopened. He watched the way his chest rose and fell evenly as he slept. He watched the way soft tufts of blond fell into his face, and the way Fai's nose wrinkled a little when a particular strand brushed against it. 

Kurogane carefully pushed that hair out of the mage's face and waited for it to settle into a somewhat serene expression before he shifted his weight and slid off the bed. He moved silently to the fireplace and checked to see that all of the embers had burned themselves out. It wasn't all that cold, so he didn't think he needed to start the fire again. Besides, Fai was better with the cold than he was, and even in just his pants, he was fine.

But that led to a different matter altogether. Fai needed clothing, and he certainly wasn't going to let the other man walk out there in just a shirt. So he silently opened the door and stepped outside, stretching a bit and basking in the natural light. He knew something wasn't totally right with this place, but he did feel more comfortable here than he did in the city, so that was a worry for later, once he got Fai some clothes.

It didn't take long to find someone to help. A young woman was sitting at the main fire, watching several pots as they heated. He took a step towards her and cleared his throat so she wouldn't be startled when he was suddenly standing next to her. Still, she jumped, and when she turned to look at him, her eyes widened and her cheeks darkened. Maybe he should have at least grabbed a blanket or something, but it was too late for that now.

"Can you help me get some clothes for my companion and me?" He stopped a few feet in front of her, keeping his hands down at his sides. "Ours are mostly ruined, and these pants are all I have."

The woman stared, but she seemed to compose herself after a moment, and she stood. "Wait here." She scurried off into one of the buildings. After a few minutes, she came out with a large armful of cloth and shoved it at Kurogane. "Here."

"Thank you." He took the cloth and smiled, chuckling just a bit when her cheeks reddened again. He hadn't seen a girl react like that around him even years before he was first sent to the time witch, and maybe before last night, it would have mattered, but now he was pretty content with the way things were going. Even if Fai never wanted to do anything with him again, at least for that moment, they were together.

Balancing the bundle of clothing with one arm, he opened the door to the guest cabin and stepped inside, looking over at the bed to see if Fai was still asleep.

“Kurosama.” A meek little voice came from the opposite side of the room. The owner sat with his back against the wall, cheeks flushed with eyes moistened by tears. Slender arms were wrapped around a pail as his body hunched over the top. It was obvious what had transpired while the ninja was away by taking in Fai’s appearance. Any food that managed to still be in his stomach was now at the pail's tin bottom. 

“I… I … think I’m pregnant.” The atmosphere brightened as the mage looked up. Those tears dissipated instantly. “You better take responsibility.” 

Kurogane stood there, mouth open and eyes wide, holding the bundle of clothing to his chest. Normally he would say something about Fai's joke, but given the way the mage huddled over the pail, he pushed any snide retort aside and regained his composure. "Is that from the pill the kid gave you last night?" He put the clothing on the bed and got some water, bringing it over to Fai and holding it out to him, but at arm’s length so he didn't have to see just what was in that bucket.

“Yeah, or at least I hope so. Or Kuropapa really will have some explaining to do.” Fai’s voice was strained as he stood up, placing the bucket aside and taking the water. It wasn’t how he wished to start his morning and the memory of that foul black mass expelling from his body would not be something so easily erased from his mind or his tongue. Either way he was grateful for it. Already his body was feeling lighter than it had in days. He wouldn’t say he was back to normal yet, but even a fraction of regaining his old self was far better than the alternative. 

He drank the water with the vigor of a person trying to wash a taste out of his mouth, then took his thumb to wipe any excess from his lips. “I see Papa was already busy providing for his family?” Some jokes just never got old.

Kurogane walked back to pile of clothes he left dumped on the bed once Fai took the glass of water from him, so his back was turned when that retort came. He ignored the other man for a moment as he sorted through the clothes: loose, natural fabrics that breathed a lot better than the synthetic clothing they had been wearing. "Hm?" He knew Fai would understand that he heard him, but he was going to dismiss that playful banter at least until he was sure the mage was going to be okay.

Not that he would voice the concern either and not that he would tell Fai he was a little pissed at him for the way he spoke to him when the kid was around, so for now he tugged the new white shirt over his head and kept his back to the mage.

Fai stared at that broad back as he gauged him, and as if coming to a decision he simply shrugged his shoulders. “Seems to be a nice fit. Didn’t look like they had many guys your size around here.” Now that he thought about it the biggest man he saw last night - What was his name, John, Jason?- Was still shadowed over by Kurogane’s natural stature. 

The mage walked over to the counter and fixed something quick for them to eat. Bread, dried fruit, and unknown salted game meat would do for now.

“Here.” He pushed a plate to the Ninja’s side of the counter. “If you’re hungry.” The mage wasn’t feeling much for eating, but he still choked down the food. The day was going to be long and they both needed to eat something.

"Of course they don't have anyone my size here." Kurogane looked down at the food and ate a little. "Doesn't that make this a bit too convenient? Why would they have clothes ready to fit me when we had a hard time finding that in that city?" He glanced at Fai and frowned a little. "Should you be moving around so much right now? You're in pain, aren't you? I still have to look at your shoulder."

“Yeah, but I’m better than I was yesterday.” Fai took another forced bite but he seemed satisfied that Kurogane was eating at least. “After I clean up a little, and when you’re done eating, I’ll let you look as much as you want.” He promised as he pushed his own plate away and stepped around the counter and back over to the water basin, being sure to not give the contents of the pail a second look.

Kurogane had a point, and it wasn’t that Fai hadn’t notice the strange things about this place, it was more that his brain hadn’t been clear enough to think on them. Yes there were vague notions that things weren’t right, instincts and more primal urges that warned of danger, but it wasn’t until this morning that he was given the freedom to wrap his brain around it. As if whatever was blocking him had come up along with everything else that was in the bottom of that bucket.

His hand had stopped at his neck, towel dripping cold water down his back as he held it there, his other hand gripping his borrowed shirt where he tied it about his waist as makeshift towel, as his eyes focused on some non-existent point beyond the cabin walls.

Kurogane sighed and looked down at his plate, poking at some of the fruit before he turned enough to look at Fai's back. "You found this in the cabinet didn't you? The same one I found the food in yesterday?" He already knew the answer, but he needed to confirm it. No one had come in here, and the food was placed there by someone else. It had to be. It certainly wasn't in there when he made the stew.

It was then that he noticed Fai seemed to be staring at nothing. What was he spacing out for? With a shake of his head, he stood and walked over to him. "Hey." He rested his hand on the mage's uninjured shoulder. "What is it?"

Impossibly blue eyes looked up at Kurogane, their vibrancy undeterred by the blonde curtain of his bangs. How could he convey what was going through his mind. 

“I…”

How could he rely the feeling of the violation that just came into light. If Telam was inside his head, if that man had been manipulating him, weaving himself inside Fai’s very brain to skew his thoughts, anything was possible. He could have even used him to switch Kurogane’s focus. Yes, Fai always had control of himself but all an idea took a thought or a notion. If there was a foreign consciousness in his mind at the same time it would take so little and what if - those eyes flickered to the bed then back to the ninja’s face - no, he wouldn’t think that. That was something they both wanted, something they both desired way before coming to this damned world. Wasn’t it? 

Kurogane was a little startled by the look Fai was giving him. Something was definitely wrong.   
"Ah. Did I take it too far?" Kurogane shook his head and kept his hand on the mage's shoulder. "I'm just a little pissed because you scolded me for no reason last night. Don't let that bother you." His brows furrowed a little. "If that's not it, then tell me. Why do you look so upset?"

Fai’s brows knitted at his words. Is that what Kurogane thought was going on inside the mage’s head? The concept seemed so innocent to him, and he wished that that was what was causing his soul to start hurting. 

“No, it’s not you. You’re right though. This place, everything about it is wrong. I should have felt it last night, but I just brushed it off.” His voice wavered ever so slightly. “That isn’t something I would do, not like that.”

"You brush off my concerns all the time." Kurogane watched Fai carefully. That wasn't quite it either, was it? There was something more to this than the mage was telling him. "Are you going to get to the point or are you going to make me guess? If it isn't because I was half ignoring you because I was pissed, what is it?"

“If I was trying to distract you?” The words, as indirect as they were, still killed Fai to say.

"Distract me from what? Eating and sleeping?" Kurogane's frown deepened. "What are you saying? You didn't want to do any of that, and you were just fucking with me?" Something flashed in his eyes, and he felt his chest get a little tight. He pulled his hand back from Fai's shoulder and turned his head to the side so he didn't have to look at the mage. So that's what this was? He was just messing with him? No wonder he joked so much about it earlier. Kurogane felt so stupid for falling for it.

Fai watched his hand slip away from his shoulder. “No.” He started; voice was barely a breath past his lips. “If he used me, to distract you, to occupy your thoughts with something other than what you noticed about this place. He couldn’t manipulate you directly, so he would have had to use another channel.” He bowed his head, his shoulders starting to tremble. “I don’t know how much of that was me versus him.”

Ah. So that was it? So it wasn't him after all? Kurogane kept his head turned to the side as he listened to Fai. And as the silence stretched out between them, he felt that tight feeling in his chest only get worse. "You didn't want to do that with me?" His voice was so soft he even startled himself. "You're saying that I did that with him, in your body?"

“Not exactly.” Fai turned his eyes away like a scolded child. “The mind is a fragile thing and can be easily swayed, especially if the emotions are already there. It would take just the weight of a whisper to tip the scales one way or the other. It was me you were with last night.” His ears started to burn at the memory of it but it was quickly lost to the shame that was filling his body, and the longer Kurogane seemed to be angry the worse the feeling became. His arm wrapped around his bare stomach as if trying to ease the knot that was building there. 

Kurogane glanced at Fai out of the corner of his eye and watched the way he curled in on himself. What was he supposed to do or say now? The tightness in his chest spread, and he lifted his hand to rub at the connection of his fake arm. He had that fist clenched so tightly that the wires and the fibers were tugging at his flesh and protesting the pressure. 

What was wrong with him? Why was he so conflicted? Normally he knew exactly what he wanted and needed to do, and he didn't waver. Here he was, watching Fai feel guilty for something that wasn't really his fault. On the one hand, he wanted to pull the mage into his arms and tell him that it was fine. That no one got into his head and manipulated him. On the other, he was really unsure what he meant by the whole thing. Yeah, he said it was him last night, but all that talk about being swayed and whispers left him unsure. It really didn't sound like Fai wanted any of it, and as much as he hated to admit it, it hurt to think he wasn't wanted. With the way the mage was reacting, Kurogane was convinced that all he did was hurt him, and not just physically.

"What do you want me to say?"

What did he want him to say? That they shouldn’t have woken up this morning and this could all be part of some unfortunate dream? That he would take back last night if he could? That since it wasn’t 100% completely him that it didn’t count? Were they even sure that was true? Fai had never had someone inside of his head before; he didn’t know what could be in the realms of possibility. But as he watch Kurogane, and he took in slight tensing of muscle Fai was wondering if it mattered? Last night happened. Last night Kurogane held him and there was no questioning if those emotions were real or not. 

“Nothing. You don’t have to say anything. I’m the idiot. I was getting worked up. Worried that-” He paused and blushed. “-that last might not have been what I pictured in my head, that I could have been swayed into it by that… whatever he is, like it tainted the memory somehow.”

_You sound like a wistful princess._ Fai chided himself as his hands moved to hold his elbows. “There’s no such thing as perfect, is there? And I don’t regret last night.” He reached out to touch Kurogane’s real arm. This was only part of his issue, the violation of his mind would be dealt with later and the idea caused a new sensation to grow inside of the mage fueled by anger. His focus shifted back onto the ninja “Don’t for one second think that I do. W-what we felt was real enough for me.”

"And you wanted it?" Kurogane let go of his own shoulder when he felt the hand on his arm, and he looked down at it. He stared for a moment at Fai's slender fingers before he brought his other hand up to touch them. As he did, he lifted his gaze, red eyes locking onto blue. "Are you upset that it happened the way it did, then?" He slid his fingers slowly along the back of Fai's hand and up his arm. "And if it was perfect, would you be happy?" The tightness in his chest started to loosen up, but there was still that subtle pang of guilt.

“I-I wanted it,” Fai ears pinked at the admission. Outside the heat of the moment some phrases were far more embarrassing than others. And who knew he could actually be embarrassed? 

“It, Sex…” What was he twelve? Why did that word make stomach flip? “With you was something I wanted for a long time, a-anything with you. And I’m only mad that he could have taken something like that,” Fai knew that his feelings for his ragtag family, and particularly for Kurogane, where the only specks of light inside himself. Yes, the darkness had been shrinking the further from the past he moved, and it was being filled with the people around him. But the thought that someone could touch that part of him and try to corrupt it, made him feel that the ground would open under his feet, and the anger swelled again.

Kurogane lifted his hand from Fai's arm to touch his cheek. "If you wanted it, then no one took anything. Maybe it wasn't what you imagined, and maybe it was a little raw..." He glanced off to the side at that, his ears turning just the slightest shade of pink. The pain in his chest was gone now, though, and so he turned back to Fai after a moment. "But realistically, it probably would never have happened the way either of us thought hm? You're too impulsive, and I'm too stubborn."

Finally a smile curled the mage’s lips and he turned his head to nuzzle his palm, kissing the simulacra of the life line before he turned his head to have it cup his cheek again. “Well someday I’ll have to do it the way you imagined it, then.”

"I think it would be better for both of us if that didn't happen." Kurogane brushed his thumb over Fai's lower lip and managed a little grin. "I don't really feel like fighting with you until you can't help but throw yourself at me."

_How little you know._ Fai smiled back. Did Kurogane really understand that it was well beyond that point? Even now with him so close his body was reacting like that of a teenage boy. His heart pounding, cheeks flushing, palms sweating, and his thoughts were nothing but a swooned fog as he looked at the smile on the ninja’s face. 

“I should get dressed. I don’t think storming the tower like this will work in our favor,” Fai finally said.

"No..." Kurogane shook his head and pulled Fai into his arms, being careful of the wound on his shoulder. He held him against his chest and rested his cheek in his hair. "We're not storming the tower just yet." He whispered. "You're still in pain, aren't you? You were just sick, and you barely ate. I haven't looked at your shoulder yet. We're not going to rush this."

“Wha!” The sudden pull against Kurogane’s chest force air from Fai’s lungs. What could do but stand there and agree with him? It wasn’t has if the man left it open for discussion. “Okay Kuropapa.” He complied.

"Call me that again and I'll get pissed." He muttered. "Do you know how ridiculous you sound saying it after we did _that_?"

Fai felt better knowing that he wasn’t the only one having difficulties with adult words. “But the baby.” A pink tongue poked its way out as Fai stuck it out the ninja, thankful that the atmosphere between them had lightened significantly.

"As if that could ever happen." He snapped at the mage. "And if it did, you couldn't possibly be human, and I couldn't do that again." His ears reddened a bit, but he didn't let Fai go.

“Well I’ve been non-human before.” Fai reminded him as his head tilted up against his chest.

"That's different." Kurogane huffed a bit and pulled back just enough to look at him. "I was there when that happened..."

One perfectly arched eyebrow twitched upward. “You know it’s not possible, right? Unless I suddenly became a woman, which isn’t going to happen, I don’t think it’s something you have to worry about. Besides we have two kids already that are hard enough for us to keep track of.”

"Of course I know it's not possible. That's the point I was making." He groaned a little and leaned back in, pressing his face into his hair. "They're fine. It's you that's a handful."

“Me?” Fai’s cheeks puffed out in indignation. “I’m perfectly well behaved.” He wasn’t sure if he could get used to this affectionate side of the ninja. He liked it, but it certainly was a change from the man who always made half intended swipes at him with his sword. Yes, he liked it enough where he almost regretted the next words out of his mouth. “You, wanted to look at my shoulder?”

Those words brought him out of whatever it was he was in, and he tensed a little, but he quickly let go of Fai so the other man wouldn't notice. And if he did notice, then he wasn't going to admit to it. "Oh, yeah. You wanted me to use that stuff on it, didn't you?" He got up and grabbed the supplies Fai used to treat his hand the night before.

“Yeah.” When Kurogane finally let him go Fai shook his head clear and walked over to pile of clothing and quickly slipped on a pair of pants. The fabric was tough, heavy, and something similar to that of denim. They were far less constricting then the other clothes and would allow for fluid movements when it came down to fighting. 

“There should be some bandages still on the counter,” Fai said as he came back and sat on the stool, a simple beige cotton shirt folded in his hands.

"Yeah..." Kurogane gathered the bandages and the salve and sat in front of him. "Do the pants fit okay?" He took one of the clean cloths and gently wiped Fai's wound. He wasn't sure why he bothered asking, since it was clear the clothing fit fine, but he hadn't changed his own pants yet, so maybe if they fit Fai perfectly, his would fit him perfectly. 

He frowned a little at that. He still didn't like how easy this was, and now that more pressing matters seemed to be over with, he could focus on everything else that was wrong. "Does this hurt?" He dabbed some of the salve on the wound once he cleaned it.

“The pants are fine, thank you. Yeah, it stings. But I’ll be alright,” Fai winced a little. “What about your hand? Did you check it yet?”

"I've had worse, so don't worry about it." Kurogane carefully spread the salve and wrapped Fai's shoulder with a clean bandage. "You're the one who overdid it, not me. Is there anything else you want me to check?"

“I did what I had to do. If I hadn’t I can’t say what kind of condition I would be in this morning,” He glanced quickly to the items on the counter. The glasses iridescent lenses shimmered in the gray morning light as the other pill sat there like an unassuming bit of coal. One pill should have been enough, so why did the boy give them two? Unless he thought what they all did. Syaoran was a strong magician, if Telam reached out to him the way he did Fai, Syaoran’s magic could possible react the same way. “As soon as you’re done, we should go.”

Kurogane looked at Fai flatly. Clearly the mage didn't understand what he meant, and was so quick to move on, that he figured he should just drop it. "I'm done with your shoulder, if that's what you mean." He muttered a little and sat back. "You have nothing else you need me to check?" He understood Fai's impatience. He wanted to get the kid back just as much, but he also didn't want to rush into something they weren't prepared for.

Fai stood up, pulled the shirt on, and gathered Watanuki’s items to him. “We don’t have much we can grab. I’m not completely healed but I’m better than I was and he won’t be expecting that.” To add emphasis, Fai snapped his fingers and power arched around the room. Cascading silver motes of light filled the air, as the mage smiled. It felt good, using power unhindered. Like a smoker who craves nicotine, the feel of magic coursing through a mages body can feel just as satisfying. 

Kurogane shrugged a little and moved to the water basin, washing up quickly and silently before he changed into the new pair of pants and pulled his boots on. He wasn't going to argue, but he didn't have to like it.

Just as Fai had lifted his hand to the door, a knock from the other side stopped him. He blinked once at Kurogane before he opened it.

“Ah! Morning! I trust you all slept well?” It was the old man from the fire the night before, and he wasn’t alone. Behind him was what seemed to be a small’s town worth of people and not a one of them looked to be in a meet and greet kind of mood

The old man shook his head. “We can’t let you leave.” The words were menacing enough on their own but the man’s weathered faced gave them additional weight.

“I’m afraid, we can’t let you stop us.” Fai didn’t want to fight, but their options seemed limited.

"No? Why's that?" Kurogane frowned. "The last time someone told us we can't do something, it didn't go well." His eyes narrowed at the old man and he moved just enough to be more in front of Fai than anything. If this did turn into something more physical, he could take it a bit better right now than the mage could.

“He said we can go back. To our lives, and or families. We just had to keep you two here!” A woman yelled from the crowd outside. 

Fai raised a hand to Kurogane’s shoulder. They weren’t about to fight a crowd of old men, women, and children. “So what you said last night?”

“Of coursed we’d want to go back! This place is hell! Hunting? Like animals! Alone without our children!? Children without their parents!?”

"Are you stupid?" Kurogane snapped, clenching his fists a bit, despite the wound that was healing on his real palm. "You can't fight either of us and kill us, so how are you going to keep us here _and_ go back? Or do you not understand that deal sounds like a way to keep you here and keep you subdued? You can't do both." He frowned. "And how could you trust someone who exiled you in the first place?"

“They’ll do it on a hope,” The old man countered.

“It doesn’t look like we have a choice either than, Kurosama?” Fai looked up at the ninja, just before he darted forward; shoving his elbow into the chest of the closest man to him and like the first hit in a game of billiards the impact against one forced the rest to spread out in confusion.

"So stupid." Kurogane muttered and used the confusion to push forward, grabbing Fai, slinging him over his shoulder, and moving. It wouldn't be the first time he carried the mage like this, and he figured it wouldn't be the last. He didn't even care if the other man got mad. There was no way he was going to be able to run well after what happened the night before, or even with the way he was so ill this morning. Besides, Fai's slight weight wasn't enough to slow him down, and those villagers wouldn't be able to catch up to him.

After his world stopped spinning, Fai had found himself over one broad shoulder of the larger man. A list of comments raced through his head but he would save them all for later. This course of action made the best sense, and Kurogane just eliminated what he felt was an obstacle. Though he wasn’t sure if that thought helped or hurt his pride. “Head to the left and just keep going! There was more cover back that way.”

Kurogane grunted a bit to let Fai know he heard him as he moved in the direction he indicated. Once he was sure they gained more than enough distance, and there was a significant amount of trees and brush to hide them, he slowed to a stop and set Fai down. "We can walk and it should be fine, right? Don't push yourself yet."

“Remind me to teach you the difference between a sick person and a sack of potatoes.” Fai snipped back as he was righted. “We need to get to a place where we can test these.”

"Then next time when you overdo it, I'll carry you like you're a girl." Kurogane barked and looked around, scanning the trees. "Just put them on and look."

Could be that easy? Fai sighs and closed his eyes as he took the glasses from his pocket and slipped him over his nose. Slowly his eyes opened, and the color drained from his face.

"What is it?" Kurogane frowned when he watched Fai's face fall. "What do you see?"

“Nothing.”


	11. Corrosion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A short Syaoran-centric chapter

Syaoran leaned back against his cell wall. It had been two days since his capture, but time felt like it was leeching away. He never expected the God’s Hands children to attack him, so he was left with little choice but to surrender or fight his way out. So in the grips of those dirty little hands, he gave himself up, and now he sat in this sterile white room. The room’s smooth surfaces shone coldly with the silver light of the moon as it filtered in through a high window. The floor and all three walls were a brilliant blaze of lunar luminescence making sleep near impossible.

“Syaoran?” The boy looked down at the little white creature that lay against his side.

“Hm?” He scooped Mokona up into his hands and offered him a small smile, for all the good it would do him.

“Do you think they’re okay?” 

“Faisan and Kuroganesan? I’m sure. They’re both very strong. And we felt that a little bit ago right? Faisan’s magic. So they’re close.” It had woken him up from the light doze he had finally managed to find. It was a refreshing touch to his aura. He saw it in a flash of blue then felt it. Soft, gentle, cooling, just like Fai. Since the mage had gotten his powers back, it was a feeling Syaoran had grown accustomed to. He never knew a sense of home before. People would say it was like a comfort or a scent of a place. For Syaoran it was the feel of the others near him. Fai’s magic, Kurogane’s presence, and Mokona’s sweet nature. These were home to him, and would be home until he was able to finish his price and find his parents. 

“Yeah, they weren’t ever far away, right?” Mokona’s ears perked a little, and Syaoran hugged him close. 

“Right. They’ll be back. Which is why we have to wait.” 

“Why?” Syaoran stood up at the sudden voice, the chain about his neck pulling him back down to his knees.

“Jarcus.” Brown eyes narrowed as he pulled Mokona behind his legs. “Why what?”

“Why do you all continue to defy me! I offer you everything, and still you won’t accept me.” The man paced back and forth beyond the bars, his white silk swirling about his ankles with every turn. “Is there something more I can give you? Something more that they would want? The thin one expelled me and the taller one wouldn’t let me in, why?”

Syaoran just watched as the man spoke, watched the gears ticking away in his head. His inability to comprehend even the most basic of human emotions left Syaoran more than a little bemused. “No one wants to have someone else in their mind. It’s free will. You hurt Faisan by doing that didn’t you?”

The man turned suddenly and wrapped his hands around the cell’s bars. The moon light alternating with shadows over his face and making Jarcus’ expression seem much more severe. “Not on purpose! I didn’t want to hurt him! He was different! I know that now, his magic doesn’t work with it. It’s too chaotic.”

“Too chaotic?” The boy stood up again, this time slowly. “What do you mean?”

“There’s order to everything, a sequence to everything, rules, a program that all life has to follow.” Telam’s voice started to speed up. “If something doesn’t follow that rhythm, it’s chaotic. But you! I can show you!” White knuckles tightened more about the bars. “I can show you, and then you’ll explain it to them and you’ll all stay.” 

Instinctively Syaoran backed away. “We can’t stay. That’s not up to us.”

“I know, it’s that thing right?” Jarcus nodded toward Mokona, his voice trembled but his eyes were still that calm void that the boy found more unnerving, and those eyes followed him even as Syaoran picked up the creature and held him close.

“It’s not up to Mokona either.” Syaoran had a threat in his words.

“But if it wasn’t here, you couldn’t leave.” 

“No. There are other ways. We don’t have a choice.” He had to do something to get the focus off Mokona. “We can move worlds without its help, and we’ll have to. I owe someone a debt.” 

Telam cocked his head at this and looked at Syaoran. “A debt?”

“Yes, I have to keep moving. Going world to world.”

“So stop.” 

“I-it’s not that simple.” Syaoran stuttered at how quickly the answer came from his captor, and his head shifted causing the chain to clink. “I have a-“

“Price, I know you said that. So stop. Then you can relax and stay here and no more of that dangerous stuff. I’d protect you.” The bars in the man’s hand started to dissipate into swirls of black smoke. “If you didn’t have to move on, you could stay. If there wasn’t a price you could stay.” 

“That’s not how it works. Like you said there’s a rhythm to everything and a balance that must be kept. My price is part of that balance.” Syaoran explained while keeping his voice level.

Telam watched Syaoran for a long unnerving minute before he backed away from his cell and the bars formed again. “So it really wasn’t you, was it?” 

“Huh?” Syaoran shared a glance with Mokona who now hopped to his shoulder.

“I know your face, and I know his magic.” Telam’s hand waved in the air. The gesture was dismissive but with it, the world seemed to falter for a moment, and the image of the dark haired man went static.

“I’ve gone through a lot of trouble so far. Elaborately so.” Telam sat down on set of stairs just outside the light. “You talk about prices, balances, and debts and you hop between worlds without a care for what’s done. I've seen things from the mage’s mind. The worlds, the desert princess, the other you. You’re a child of chaos. Your father is made from you, and you represent a creation of distorted time.”

In the shadows, an image flashed of a boy that looked like Syaoran, his expression blank as blood splattered his clothing and cheek below one blue eye. “Shall I show you?” Before the words could break past his lips Syaoran was thrust back against the wall, and Telam was upon him, Mokona lost somewhere in the motion. “Learn what your existence does.”

Icy fingers clasped around Syaoran’s wrist and his world started move. Screams, terror, death, fire so hot it felt like it would melt his flesh: images rapidly filled his mind, scoring their place as if they were his own memories, his own thoughts. Fear, a child crying, children with sunken faces and deep hollowed necks, then it all went black, and all he felt was alone.


	12. Mass Transfer

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Please forgive the tardiness of this chapter. Things are going to go a little slower for awhile as I work full time and go to college. My partner in crime also appears to have one of those pesky job things as well.

Toxic clouds hazed out the sun and stretched over the sky, darker fledgling wisps swirled with the promise of maturing into storms. The sun could only be made out as a strip of caustic yellow light by the horizon where it met the vast expanse of the earth. Gone were the trees, gone were the pine needles below their feet, and gone was the scent of fresh air. Fai felt as though he was going to choke on the mix that was entering in and out of his lungs, and the vision before him left him mute. 

It was a waste land. The earth was colored green by the filtered sun light; outcroppings of rock were all that marked the land to the east. To the west dirt devils danced over a ledge that dropped down to a lake of solid black rock. Fai narrowed his eyes as if it would magnify his sight. 

The rock looked to be frozen in time, caught as it bubbled and boiled over, smooth mounds forever locked in their outward roll. “A lava bed?” He whispered softly after finding his voice. The village was this close to something like that, and they never noticed? The village?

He swallowed the lump that formed in his throat as he turned back to way they had come. In the distance he saw a few structures similar to the cabins he had almost expected to not see. However the people were gone, even from here he should see them without the trees blocking his line of sight, but he saw nothing. A tattered curtain that fluttered and gave away to a gust of wind, landing off in the distance, was the only sign of movement. The mage stumbled backwards, his hand reaching out for stability.

Kurogane watched Fai with an intensity he didn't bother hiding. He watched the way the mage's eyes widened and narrowed as he looked through the glasses. Whatever he was seeing, it couldn't have been good, but Kurogane resisted the urge to ask about it. He knew Fai would tell him when he was done, or at least he'd tell him whatever he thought important enough to disclose.

So when the mage stumbled, Kurogane moved a little and caught him, catching the smaller hand in his own, his artificial arm moving around his waist to catch him from falling more than that stumble. "Hey." He said, trying to stabilize the other man. Whatever he had just seen must have been a shock, since it wasn't like Fai to lose his balance like that. "What is it?"

Fai felt something grab him from behind, strong limbs wrapping around his waist, trapping him, and locking him down. A moan of surprise escaped his lips as he struggled and felt more like a feral cat than a human. The motion forced the glasses to slant on his face. The toxic reality and the simulacra of one blended and fazed into one another. He saw ghost trees ripple on an empty plain. 

_Calm down, calm down Fai._ He closed his eyes against all of it, stilling his body until he was able to find a focus, a voice, a presence, the owner of the arms that held him. The one thing that was real. “Kurosama?”

Fai breathed deeply, and turned his head up to the ninja, one shaky hand pulling the glasses from his face before he opened his eyes again. The ghost forest was still around them fuzzing in and out. Now that his mind was no longer fooled, the illusion hadn’t the appropriate anchor. “Here.” He whispered to his companion as he handed over the glasses. “You’ll have to see.”

By the time Fai turned and addressed him, Kurogane was frowning to the point where one would think his lips were permanently turned down. He certainly hadn't expected Fai to struggle like that, but he had, and now the ninja was worried more than he otherwise would have been. "What did you see?" He asked without taking the offered glasses, since he had no intention of pulling his arm back from the smaller man's waist, and he was not letting go of the hand he held, trying to offer some solidarity, as Fai was clearly shaken. "I'm not sure I want to see if you reacted that badly."

The mage just offered up the glasses again. There was no other way and Fai realized that as he looked beyond Kurogane to the lava field behind him, and with its false mirrored meadow accompaniment. They wouldn’t be able to operate if only one saw the world for what it was. Fooling the brain was an amazing thing. Like back in Otou, If they could see it, smell, feel it, taste it, it was real to the mind and real to the body. Gods only knew how narrowly they escaped drop offs, rifts, or worse in just the time they had been there. What would Kurogane do if Fai fell into something? What would he see if the mage was just suddenly gone? What would Fai do if the reversed happened? No. They both had to see it and once the veil was lifted it couldn’t be dropped back down. 

Kurogane just looked at him, one brow lifting a bit as he dropped his arm from the mage's waist and let go of his hand. His frown deepened and he shook his head. If Fai wasn't going to say anything about it, he wasn't going to go along with it. "No."

“I can’t describe it. It won’t change anything even if I do.” Fai took Kurogane’s hand and placed the glasses in the center of one large palm. “Just look at me, when you put them on. Focus on me first and then anything else.” Fai would at least try to save him some the inertia of the experience.

"Oh so you can speak." Kurogane muttered as he looked down at the glasses Fai placed in his hand. "When something is so bad that you don't answer me, you're not going to get me to voluntarily do the same thing, especially when you just shove it at me. That's stupid. That's like jumping off a cliff and expecting me to jump off after you." He looked up from his hand to look at Fai for a moment. He had to have known how it sounded, right? Why else would he say anything about focusing on him unless it was really bad?

He looked down at the glasses again and sighed a bit before lifting them to his face and sliding them on, his eyes closed until he felt the weight settle on his nose. When he opened his eyes, he had to blink several times to clear what he thought was his blurred vision, but it was just a slight haze that had spread along the ground. The ground that was now cracked beneath his feet rather than covered with grass and fallen leaves.

He lifted his head to look at Fai, seeing the barren landscape around them, but ignoring it for now in favor of focusing on the mage. That's what he wanted, wasn't it? "This is what you wanted me to see?" He frowned a bit, his hand moving to the side as if to indicate nothing. That's what this was, wasn't it? Dry land all around them. Nothing but rocks and dirt. Sunlight dulled by the sickly green hue of the air. He saw the blackened lake to the west and frowned, turning his body enough to get a better look at it, though he made no move towards it. And when he turned, he saw those dilapidated structures out of the corner of his eye and grunted.

"There's nothing here. And no one's been here for a very long time." This had to have been what upset Fai, right? The lack of any life except for them?

“Nothing.” Fai watched him as Kurogane experienced the world anew and joined him in the field of desolation that the glasses showed him. This real and tainted world. “Even if you take them off, it won’t go away. You’ll see patterns of distorted light and images, but that’s it.” 

“No, I shouldn’t say nothing, there is something I can feel. Something that I shouldn’t.” Fai turned his head west over the lake. In the distance jagged mountains cut into the horizon.  
“Out there.” An elegant finger pointed out. “I feel Mokona, but more than that, I feel a feather.”

Kurogane took the glasses off and lifted a hand to rub his eyes. Fai was right. He could still see the hazy land that had shown itself through the lenses, and he winced a little at the distortion. This was too much, wasn't it? Though it certainly explained part of the reason why he always felt so uneasy. It wasn't just the technology of this world that made him uncomfortable, it was the dead feeling within it. Like no one existed. 

"Feeling the manjuu is one thing." The ninja grumbled and handed Fai the glasses. "But how the hell do you feel a feather? That's impossible isn't it?"

“I don’t know.” Fai’s eyes hardened toward the mountains as if he could see Telam himself sitting upon his ivory throne, laughing at the mockery he made of their every own senses. “But I’m going to find out.” Between him and them there was a sea of blackened danger filled with lava tubes, fragile surfaces and temperatures that could melt flesh. No, there was another way to get to those far off mountains and to their quarry. 

Fai’s fingers darted out and his eyes flashed with power. Light surrounded them as they were lifted from their feet. The effort for the spell showed itself in fine drops of sweat against Fai’s brow. Levitation wasn’t complicated and never required much focus, but to drag two people together in one direction was a different story all together. It was a manipulation of the air, and the currents, a calculation of the environment that had to constantly be amended. If not for the illness that still plagued his body, it would barely have caused a bat of an eye, but the pain from using magic forced his concentration to stem in several directions. However, the important thing was, was that he could use magic. 

“Bear with it for now.” If he was coaxing himself or calming Kurogane, even he didn’t know.

"The hell are you doing!" Kurogane reached out for one of his arms, but pulled back just before grabbing it. Given that they were above the ground and moving towards that mountain, the last thing he wanted to do was startle the mage and fall to his death. So he just grumbled and muttered a string of curses.

“You can yell at me later!” Fai yelled back as the lake of black passed below them. It was better, he knew, to beg forgiveness than ask permission in this case. Kurogane would sooner carry Fai on his shoulders and across the lava than have him exert himself in this manner. The ninja would figure it out on his own time that this was the only reasonable course of action. Only a fool would take on an obsidian field without knowing its nature. 

"I'll yell at you whenever I damn well please!" Kurogane hated this. He didn't care what Fai's reasons were, but couldn't he at least have warned him about it before yanking him into the air like this?

“I would appreciate it if you at least waited until after we saved the day.” A sardonic smile curved his lips before he returned all focus back to their flight, but then something happened. A flash of light blinded him, and suddenly the currents shifted. His power wavered as he tried to adjust but like trying to catch a stream of water with bare hands it slipped through his grasp. “Shit!” 

The uncharacteristic curse left his lips before he felt the sensation of falling. They were falling. He had to think. Quickly! What was to meet them below was nothing but jagged, black-glassed earth and no chance of surviving. He threw his arms out as if to brace for an impact but instead there was a spark of blue magic followed by a gust of wind. It caught them up and threw them forward, past the lake’s shore and onto the ground. Air left his lungs when he first hit the ground as the warrior in him instinctively made for the physical adjustments. What parts were necessary, what parts were expendable, what could he mend quickly on his own and what would need time. 

It was barely a second but it felt like eons had passed before his body came to a stop and he dared to open his eyes again. Pure white greeted him in all its sicken sterility. His eyes adjusted and he had to keep the bile down as he focused on the plastic white paneling of the building that towered above him. “T..telam…?” The mage was confused for a moment before he darted up, quickly regretting the motion. “Kurosama?”

Kurogane was only a few feet away, curled in on himself as he clutched his stomach a bit. As if the levitation wasn't bad enough, getting flung every which way and then slammed into the ground with barely enough time to catch himself to keep from breaking anything was more than unnecessary. He groaned a little in response to Fai's voice, but otherwise he didn't move, nor was he going to until the world stopped spinning and his lungs started working normally again.

Fai took a mental assessment of his body. Everything was still attached, and still in working order. Possible bruised rib, likely to have several fractures here and there, nothing he couldn’t live through. Internal bleeding was possible but unlikely, and he had a dislocated shoulder. That would be simple enough to fix. Carefully he crawled over to Kurogane. “Are you okay? I.. there must be another illusionary wall to separate the sectors. I wonder if the lava bed was actually the outer city?” Fai laid back on the ground beside Kurogane, his hand over his waist. He was thankful they got out of that with just a few scrapes and bumps. The alternative was far more unpleasant. “I’m sorry, he almost bested me.”

Kurogane turned his head when he felt the hand on his waist and he frowned a little. Of course the mage looked worse than he felt himself, but he was better trained to handle rough situations, wasn't he? He slowly sat up and looked Fai over. "I didn't worry so much about you this morning only to have you damage your body even more, you know." He lifted his artificial hand to touch his cheek and winced a little at the movement. His shoulder pulled more than usual, most likely due to the rough landing, and red was seeping through his shirt where the arm met his flesh. It must have torn a bit. Great. 

He looked at Fai again and frowned a bit. "How bad off are you?"

“I would take this over how I felt yesterday any day.” Fai poorly masked his startlement at Kurogane’s touch. Considering how upset the man seemed to be with him, he had figured it would be awhile before he’d be willing to look at him, much less offer up a concerned caress. “Truthfully? I’ve been better, but also worse. Nothing that will kill me. At least not immediately.” He joked darkly with a painful shrug of his shoulders.

“You?”

"If you die any time soon, I'm bringing you back and killing you myself." Kurogane pulled his hand back and looked Fai over once before he lifted his other hand, grabbed him before he could protest, and popped that shoulder back into place. "You should be a little better now though." He didn't care if Fai got pissed at him for it. It was retribution for almost killing them both. 

Once that was done, he lifted his real hand to his own injured shoulder and touched it, hissing slightly before ripping the sleeve off and shredding it into makeshift bandages. "When you recover from that, mind wrapping this around my shoulder?" He nodded to it, his flesh already starting to bruise, blood slowly oozing from an almost invisible gash where the machine must have been forced into his skin a bit more than it would normally allow.

When Kurogane let him go the mage fell forward, catching himself against the pavement with his one good hand. A mineral taste filled his mouth from where he bit his lip against the cry of pain that surely would have come out as the ninja snapped his socket back into place. So much for gentle.

“Yeah, give me a second.” He panted out despite the burn in his ribs and the throb in his arm.

Carefully, oh so carefully he got to his feet and stood in front of him. Crimson staining the edge of his lips as he looked down at him with a hand out to accept the torn cloth.

The ninja looked up at him and held the strips of cloth up to him from where he sat on the ground. "Would you have rather I warned you?"

“No, you did it right. Still hurt though.” Fai carefully bandaged what he could of his arm. “Sorry the landing was a bit rough.”

"Tch. A bit." Kurogane snorted a little, but moved his arm a bit once Fai was done with the bandaging. "What happened anyway? Did you suddenly decide the ground was more fun than the air?"

Fai turned his head up the sky as if to study it before looking back down at larger man. “We entered the boss's lair, I guess is the best way to put it. Higher level of protection meaning a stronger illusion. When I hit the barrier I was blinded for a second, and I lost focus, so I lost the spell. I’m only at a fraction of myself right now.” Fai flexed his hand like it would help him gauge his own abilities. “I wouldn’t have even flinched otherwise. It’s like trying to draw up a mouthful of water through a straw that’s as thin as a needle.”

"So you did too much, and something surprised you, and you couldn't handle it?" Kurogane frowned a little. "We could have found another way, you know. You didn't have to risk yourself like that." He sighed and rested his hands on his thighs for a moment, bracing himself before he hopped up with one quick movement. 

“Did you see another way?” Fai stepped to the side as other man got up. “We’d still be climbing down the cliff if I hadn’t done what I did.” 

Kurogane stretched out a bit, rubbing his thighs lightly as if that would stop the soreness from the landing before he looked at Fai again. "So now what?

“Now? When we’re done licking our wounds, we find the fastest path to Telam.” Fai took out the glasses, and swore under his breath. Cracks and missing shards lay over the surface of the faceted lenses.

"We? So I get a say in how we do this now? Or are you going to throw me in the air again?" The ninja muttered and looked off to the side, eyes narrowing a little at nothing in particular, especially since he now knew none of it was real.

“You lived.” Fai commented shortly as he examined the cracked glass. “Maybe they’ll still work.” He muttered under his breath.

"Maybe I didn't. Maybe this is one of that asshole's stupid illusions, and I'm actually lying there with a broken neck. Then what, Hm? Are you going to give as few shits as you seem to give right now?" Kurogane barked a bit and clenched his fists at his sides, taking a few steps away from him.

Fai slipped the glasses on, his eyes focusing on the clearest section and while the image was heavily distorted he could make it out well enough. They were at the foot of a mountain, the inclines started gently like that of a city street but the closer one got to the Telam towers the steeper the climb became. At the midpoint there was and edge that plateaued off, and that was where the power felt the strongest.

With a deep breath he removed the glasses from his face and looked up at Kurogane. His expression was calm, not a hint of tension in jaw. “Here.” Not even his voice dared to betray him, but his eyes flashed like a sea ravaged by a squall.

Fai's lack of verbal reaction made something inside Kurogane snap, and he unclenched his fists, the tension releasing and causing a momentary flash of pain in his shoulder before it subsided. The anger in the mage's eyes did nothing to move him when he turned and took the glasses from him. He held them up to his eyes without a word and looked at that mountain. His gaze followed the path up until it got to that plateau. He looked at it for a minute before handing the glasses back to Fai and walking in that direction.

The mage followed silently, eyes burning into the back of Kurogane’s head. That was the trouble with dealing with children; they came in all shapes, sizes, and ages. Only difference is that when a twenty something year old throws a tantrum it looks like this. Normally Fai would brush it off like he did all the other times Kurogane ranted and raved or called him a stupid mage. This time he made it a little too personal and Fai was sure the ninja was well aware of that. 

They walked in silence for a while. Fai was holding his side and every breath was a new pain. The rib was probably broken instead of bruised, he should have been thankful it didn’t puncture anything, or if it had it wasn’t something he needed. _Please let the next world we go to be a medical world where it rains morphine._

Despite his own discomfort he carefully observed every move Kurogane made. Was he favoring one leg over the other? How did he bear his weight? Did he seem to have problems breathing? Was he looking paler than before? Was there blood pooling in his brain making him say stupid things? That one was a possibility, and he ground his teeth slightly. At least his train of thought was more colorful than the rocky unforgiving surrounding. 

Kurogane stopped when he thought he heard Fai take in a particularly sharp intake of breath. Of course he was in more pain than he showed earlier. That was always the case, wasn't it? Fai just did whatever the hell Fai wanted, consequences be damned. He hid things from Kurogane all the time, so why would this have been any different? It wasn't that the mage didn't care about himself or other people, it was that he made decisions on his own and never considered just what might happen. 

Like when a strange black shadow attacks him, or when he doesn't take it easy when he should be resting. Or when he almost kills the two of them because he over estimates his ability when his health isn't top notch and his power had just come back. For someone who's supposed to be the older one, he sure wasn't very good at thinking the way someone with more experience should be thinking.

Kurogane knew he shouldn't have said what he said before, and he knew Fai was angry enough at him to stare a hole in the back of his head, but he just couldn't take it anymore. He was done with it. If Fai hated him for it, then fine. He could hate him as much as he wanted, but Kurogane was tired of playing the mage's game. Maybe he should have stopped a long time ago.

So he turned a little and looked at him, his lips flat, his eyes a little dull. There was no anger in them, and he refused to show him any concern. "Walk slower if it hurts." His voice contained only enough deviation to make his words clear.

Fai kept going, pressing forward. “That’s not a luxury we can afford.” He picked up his pace just enough to walk past the ninja, not in any way to prove a point. “This ground is unstable and the wind in unpredictable. Look over there?” He nodded his head to the eroded mountain side where a pile of rocks lay further down.

“Landslides are common here.” His voice was soft yet labored. “I wouldn’t want you to get caught in one and break your neck on the way down.” The tone ended with a sharpened edge.

"And what good is it going to do if you hurt yourself any more? If you're in that much of a rush, then I'll carry you." Kurogane walked a little faster and stood in front of the mage before he crouched down and looked over his shoulder at him. This was exactly the kind of thing that agitated him the most. Fai's complete disregard for himself. What good was it if only one of them made it? Fai seemed to be okay with sacrificing himself didn't he? To what end? "If you're that concerned about my wellbeing, take care of yourself a little more. I'll never forgive you if you die."

“What will carrying me on your back help? Trust me, any way you carry me will be far worse for me than what my own two legs can do.” Fai sighed and rubbed his temples. It wasn’t like him to get this agitated. “I don’t know how my choices look to you. I don’t know how I look to you. But I don’t go charging into things without thinking. I may act idiotic but I’m not stupid. This man played us, and we fell for it and now he’s in there with Syaorankun and Mokona for, god, it could be any amount of time. That boy has been through enough. We’re supposed to be protecting him. That’s why we’re here. That’s the whole purpose. But all he does is suffer and without a word or a complaint. In the shadow of that how can I put voice to anything? Part of this is my fault, protecting him is how I make amends for ever being aligned with Fei Wong Reed in the first place.”

Fai focused his eyes downward, fixated by a piece of loose gravel. Lightening streaked across the sky as if somehow affected by the mage’s mood.

The anger was back again, but Kurogane remained crouched on the ground. He turned his head forward and clenched his fist to keep from punching the dirt and gravel beneath him. He gritted his teeth and forced himself to remain silent as the anger surged. He would not say something like he did earlier, and he would not lash out at him, even if he wanted to smack some sense into him. So he waited for it to pass before he stood again and kept his back to him, his voice retaining that monotone when he spoke. 

"Fine. Suit yourself." He took a few steps forward, but at a much slower pace than before so Fai wouldn't struggle too much to keep up with him.

Fai didn’t know why he did it; he couldn’t explain what came over him. Maybe it was blurting out too much of what was going on in his head, maybe letting that much show made him feel more vulnerable than he wanted to right now, or that speaking of the past left a hole open to that darker place inside of him. Whatever the reason, he reached out and grabbed the end of Kurogane’s shirt.

Kurogane felt that little tug and he stopped again. Part of him wanted to turn around and tell Fai it was fine, that everything was okay, that he wasn't really mad, but none of that was true, and Kurogane wasn't a liar. He was angry, and upset, and hurt, and insulted. He was pretty sure Fai didn't trust him at all, and therefore just took everything into his own hands. He didn't know how to express his feelings, which is why he lashed out. So he stood there for a moment before he turned his head enough to see the mage out of the corner of his eye. "Hm?"

“Kurosama, I-“

“I’m done waiting for you two!” A voice shouted from above them. Fai’s head darted up to the plateau. A shadow stood upon on its edge, back lit by the yellow of a setting sun against the noxious clouds. In his arms he held a body, limp and unmoving. Fai felt ice fill his veins. “Take it.”

As though nothing more than a lifeless doll the figure was thrown down at them. “Syaoran!” Fai heard Mokona shout as the mage reached out to catch it, but pain and fire spread up from his injured side and forced the rest of his body to coil into itself.

Kurogane looked up, his eyes widening. "What the fuck are you doing?" He yelled, but even as the words left his mouth he was moving, leaping into the air enough to allow him to grab the boy before he hit the ground, landing with a sharp grunt and a wince as the wound on his shoulder tore open a bit more and began to soak the shirt-made bandages once more. But he cradled Syaoran in his arms, gently setting him down on the ground by Fai before standing again and facing Telam. "I'll kill you, bastard!"


	13. Steric Factor

Fai curled his body over Syaoran to deflect the sprinkling of falling rocks as the mountainside rumbled with another clash of thunder. Cautiously, he lifted his head up to the ridge, eyes narrowed against settling dust. The gesture was more out of instinct than for any expected result. They were inside the illusion now, and any attempt to observe them from here would be in vain.

He turned his head back down to his charge held protectively in his arms. The boy was pale, and the flesh below his fingers seemed begotten of living warmth, but the boy was alive, and in their current state Fai would gladly take that over the alternative. "Sorry we’re late.” He whispered as shifted the boy's weight in his arms, wincing as the movement pulled the muscles under his ribs.

“We can’t stay here. We’ll be crushed. Perhaps it’s time we went to go cheer on daddy?” The weary smile on his lips didn’t make it to his eyes as Fai laid Syaoran carefully back against the ground and got to his feet. His body tried to snap him back down to his knees with a protest of pain as he narrowly dodge a bolder that jettisoned into the air. To stay was too defiantly dangerous.

“You’re not going to like this.” The mage spoke to no one in particular as blue sparks and string like lights shifted and swirled up from his fingertips. They cascaded down, twisting about each other until a rope had formed. Tenderly, as if sensing an unknown will, it wrapped around the boy and lifted him from the ground.

Above, Kurogane stood in front of the Telam, his fists clenched tightly at his sides as he looked up at that bastard who did this to them in the first place. This was going to be it, wasn't it? His eyes narrowed up at the man; he was done with this whole place. This bullshit world with its illusions. This feeling that he was never going to be able to anything he tried to be. This feeling that he just wasn't good enough. He never was. He never would be.

So what did it matter now? Without a word he took one step forward, then another. Each one a little faster, a little longer, until he passed through what must have been another one of those illusionary barriers. The white was still there, but this was that same room they had been in the day before. Round, white, and lifeless.

"You still have something of mine." Kurogane snarled a bit. "Give it back."

“Something of yours? I was unaware that I had anything that belonged to you.” A slender hand waved dismissively at the ninja as his barrier shimmered with the ninja’s intrusion. Telam lips bowed into a pleased smile. “You are a clever bunch aren’t you? Though the game was unfair from the start, I hadn’t expected any outside assistance. You are all full of neat tricks.”

Telam folded his hands behind his back and rolled his weight onto his heels with silk whispering against silk as his sleeves and robe tussled against each other. “I messed up first, if I had to be honest. I didn’t know the mage would have such a reaction to me being inside him.” He looked pointedly at Kurogane.

“To make up for that, I did try to play nice. I even gave you some time to think about my offer, but I’m assuming you didn’t come all the way back here to discuss new living arrangements.”

"Cut the shit." Kurogane looked right back at Telam, scowling more than normal. "We already told you before that we're not staying here. Give me back what is mine and go fuck yourself." He wasn't here to listen about what the man did to Fai, and he wasn't going to beat around the bush.

He knew it wasn't going to be that easy, but at the very least he could make his point known. They weren't going to discuss anything, and Kurogane would use force if he had to.

“According to the boy you can’t go anywhere without that little creature, at least not easily.” Telam didn’t flinch as Kurogane’s aggression; instead he seemed to be fascinated by it. “But I can see you’re not in the mood for talking. Perhaps the trip here didn’t put you in the right state of mind. Let’s fix that, hm?”

He stepped away and two beasts appeared to either side of him as if they had always been in the room. Their cat-slit eyes narrowed at Kurogane as crocodilian maws snapped, drooling with hunger. The humps of their shoulder blades stood at matching height with Telam, while their girth made the ground rumble with their stomps of impatience.

"That little creature means more to me than your stupid little challenge here." Kurogane unclenched his fists and nodded to one of the beasts at his side. "You must really know you're at a disadvantage if you have to create those things to come after me." He smirked a bit, his eyes growing colder than they had before. "You can't fight me yourself because you know that even without a weapon I would snap you in two. Pathetic."

"With my weapon, I'd do considerably more damage. Isn't that right manjuu?"

"Waaa! Kurogane is a hero!" The high pitched voice that normally irritated the crap out of him was a pretty welcome sound. And it also gave him a much better take on things. So he moved, darting to the side and towards that cage just in time to hear the "here!" come out of Mokona's mouth before a sword followed, his hand snapping out to the side and catching the hilt neatly.

“Why would I bother with something like that? This whole world is my weapon.” As if Telam didn’t understand the statement he cocked his head to the side while his hand rested against the flank of one of the beasts.

“Besides,” A short laugh came from his throat. “This is more your style any way.” He took another step back and whispered, “Go.” The beast snarled and snapped as they raced toward Kurogane descending upon him as if they were not two creatures but one ravenous beast.

With a gleam in his eyes, Kurogane unsheathed the blade and stood, that smirk from earlier shifting into an almost sick grin, one laced with bloodlust. "Bring it on."

“Ku-“ Fai’s voice cut off as he reached through the barrier. The rest of companion’s name remained caught in his throat as he the gaze of Jarcus Telam. The man was never one to greet them warmly. Even in the beginning, there had been a level of toxicity in the most idiosyncratic gestures toward them, but now it had corroded the façade, and Fai found himself staring into pools of unfathomable hate. Carefully he pulled Syaoran behind himself allowing a pillar and his own body to offer the boy the barest hint of protection.

Normally the sound of Fai's voice might distract him, but right now he was too pissed to even glance to the side. Those two beasts came at him, and he changed his stance. For illusions, they seemed to radiate power, and that agitated him almost as much as this whole situation did. But they were too large, and they didn't move quite as quickly as their cat-like appearance would have implied, so dodging that initial attack was easy. He was able to slide out of the way just as they landed, and he steadied himself enough to slice into the shoulder of one of them. Black blood arched out from the wound, and it almost seemed to shine a bit green in the light.

But he knew he had to take these down without affording them too much movement, since the ground shook a little even when the injured beast tried to stand. So he sliced at its leg, jumping onto its back and swinging at the other beast, hoping to at least impair it for a moment while he tried to gauge just how to get in that final blow.

The beast moved and tried to fling him off, but Kurogane was too steady. He thrust his sword into the back of its head, grinning a bit at the crunching sound the blade made as it went into the beast's skull. It collapsed below him, that sickly black blood pooling around him as he yanked the blade out and turned to the second one.

Fai watched in a twisted admiration as the Kurogane seemed to be flung into his element. The beast below him twitched in its final death throe, as that oil thick blood oozed out from its multitude of wounds. The smile that he saw on the ninja’s face made Fai’s cheeks start to flush as the man danced to life within the gore that surrounded him. It was like seeing a war god resurrected on an alter richly laden with sacrifice. Fai couldn’t help it, he loved watching Kurogane fight. The power, the control, the liquid smooth movements of his form. The rest didn’t matter, it never did.

“You’re a pretty twisted group of people.” Telam’s voice was by his ear, watching the fight just as intently as Fai was. Fai didn’t quail as his appearance, only stepped more firmly between him and Syaoran.

“That might be true. But you can’t beat us. You can’t beat him.”

“But I haven’t even started.” The voice purred into his ear upsetting the delicate hairs before the man was gone again.

The second one was even easier to kill as the rage flowed through Kurogane's veins as quickly as his own blood moved. How dare that asshole get so close to Fai? He really wanted to die didn't he? So he turned to the man, frowning, but a movement out of the corner of his eye drew his attention away long enough to see it.

Two more of those beasts were there, almost as if they had been there the whole time. The power they emitted was even higher than the first two, which still lay motionless on the ground, that black ichor staining the white tiles.

"Are you kidding me?" He rolled his eyes and shook his sword once, the blood splattering from the blade and curving a bit on the floor and one of the walls. Well, it looked like this was more serious, that he'd actually have to try this time. "This is a joke right?" He stepped towards the beasts and narrowed his eyes. "You think you can tire me out with this?"

“Humans do have their limitations.” Telam was now sitting at the top of the raised stairs, watching the larger man with a growing interest.

Fai’s head darted up. Something about his words didn’t seem right. He needed time, he needed to think. For the first time since coming into the barrier he took stock of the room. The power here was overwhelming but he needed to focus to pinpoint the apex, that would be the source and that would be where he’s feeling the feather from. He would need a distraction. Telam wouldn’t let him roam freely, Fai knew.

“Go Kurosama!! You look so cool!!” He shouted out despite the pain the breath for it took, but if Kurogane picked up on his reasons it would be worth it.

"Haa?" Kurogane glanced over at Fai. It was strange for the mage to cheer him on like that, at least lately, but when he saw the way Fai looked, he knew. No one else could see through Fai's fake smiles and phony laughter the way he did. He knew. There was something else here, and Fai needed time to work it out didn't he?

"Limitations my ass." He grumbled and ran at the beasts, sword ready, yelling out as his blade slashed into the face of the nearest one. "I'll show you how much of an idiot you are!"

Another swing of the blade. "Chi Ryuu Jin En Bu!" The air around him lifted as the force of the attack pushed outward in a circle, the force pushing both beasts upward. When they landed, there was quite the shake of the ground as the heavy weight of their bodies sent tremors through the floor. In the distance he thought he heard some of the rocks hitting the cliff-face below, and he grinned. This was just an illusion. He would end this.

Even as two more beasts took a step forward.

For a brief moment Fai’s eyes glazed as if he was seeing a world outside of the one they were in now. In his vision a light pulsed with ghostly essence. The power in this room was near blinding, but magic had a pattern to it, a gentle predictable rhythm. Every magician had a magical pulse that was unique all to their own. Sakura’s feather had a strong beat that was in almost constant peek but there would be a fade, a dimness to the light, and when it came his throat tightened. His started to move toward the center of the room until he felt the tiniest of pulls on the cuff of his pants.

“Faisan. Don’t hurt… “ Fai lowered down to Syaoran, a maternal hand resting on his forehead. The boy was obviously in pain and his flesh was still so cold.

“We’ll get you out of here soon.” He whispered. “Daddy and I still have a bit of work to do.”

“No, I, we made him.” The fist that balled up in the cloth of Fai’s clothes tightened then slackened as the boy blacked out once more.

Fai frowned deeply as he looked over that pained expression unable to release its anxiety even in unconsciousness. What did he mean by that? His brow furrowed until he heard a snarl from behind him. His jaw tensed, knowing what was about to happen as he felt the air shift around him as if in warning, but in his current state all he could do was prepare for it.

A giant padded paw threw him across the room in one blinding motion, his body skidding up to Kurogane’s feet, the black noxious pools of blood soaking into his clothes and smearing across the floor as the tumble of his body disrupted them.

“Join the party.” That voice was cold with a miraged tone of an obliging host.

Fai tried to get to his feet, his hand slipping in blood and bringing back down to the floor in a hard thump.

Kurogane snarled a bit when he felt Fai's body hit his feet. Without looking, he reached down with his free hand and grabbed his arm, pulling him up. He felt the sticky goop seep through his fingers, but he kept his hand on Fai's arm as he pointed his sword at Telam, watching between him and the two beasts that now circled the two of them.

"I'm not through. Don't think that just because your stupid toys keep coming that you can get cocky." He snorted and focused on the two beasts again. He flung the blade in front of him and yelled as light seemed to spiral from his body, crashing into the creatures and sending them flying back into the wall.

“Hey Kuroriti,” The sound of Fai’s own voice made the mage wince. “Figured I would just hop in.” He put his weight on his legs as Kurogane pulled him up and he fought back a moan of pain in his throat. They had to end this. Or these illusions were going to become too much even for Kurogane’s endless battle lust.

“Here.” He whispered as he dug through his blood slicked clothing and pulled out the cracked glasses. But as his pulled them out, he felt them toss into the air then shatter with crack. The pieces falling to floor between them like so many fine granules of sand, and with it Fai’s body slumped as if that hope was the only thing keeping him up.

“No more playing those games. Those weren’t in the rules.” Telam mocked.

Kurogane looked down at Fai when he slumped, and he frowned a bit. The mage was covered in that black blood, more than he would have thought. "Hey." He pulled him up again and held him right against his chest. He lowered his lips to his ear and whispered. "Remember, the only one allowed to kill you is me."

Fai closed his eyes against the fire of Kurogane’s breath upon his ear. He pulled it into himself giving his body the strength to stand straighter. “I was just taking a break.” His voice was soft and low as his lips stole a taste from the place his head came to rest against ninja’s shoulder as he took him up. They didn't need those glasses. They could finish this on their own.“I won’t give up my life for anything. I promised that didn’t I?” Slowly his lips curved against the spot his lips had pressed.

The ninja let the mage go and glanced sideways towards Telam. "Let me see if I can do what I do best hm?" Hopefully Fai would know what that was, because Kurogane was counting on him.

He stepped away from Fai and looked at the new pair of beasts that were heading towards him. He dashed forward, and as both beasts swiped at him, he dropped to the floor, sliding through that syrupy liquid and under both of them. When he stood, he was behind them, sword poised.

"I'm sick of this." He muttered, sneering a bit over the beasts' backs and looking Telam dead in the eye. "This ends now."

He channeled his energy and shouted "Sho Ryu Sen!" The force pushed those beasts forward, right at Telam at a speed much faster than those others moved earlier.

Telam cursed as he waved his hand dismissing the beast, but he couldn’t stop the power of Kurogane’s blade as it came down upon him full force, but even has the room settled Fai noted a shimmer of light dissipate from around the man. He looked untouched but there was panic in eyes as they flitted about the short alter he stood upon.

“He’s protecting it.” Fai whispered under his breath, but it was enough for him to find his strength again. “Kurosama! The rise!” Fai pointed a bloodied finger at the steps. “Again! Do it again!”

“Enough!” A raged roar of a voice startled the mage as he looked back at Telam. “I won’t let you ruin it all again! I won’t! I’ve waited eons for you. Being trapped here alone. You took it all from me. Everything.”

“What are you talking about? We’ve never been here.”

“You, personally, no. but the effect of you has been. I spent quite a bit of time figuring you all out. I wondered what kind of people you would be, but I didn’t know until I felt your mind.” Telam glared pointedly at Fai as he slowly started to walk toward him. “First it was your power, I knew it. I felt you the second you entered this place and used it all to get you to come to me. To find me. Mr. Scott, the people… everything. Was to bring you here.”

“Seichirou?” Fai cocked his head. If it was all this way from the start, how would he have gotten the man down so perfectly?

“Oh, him? I know him. Met him a long time ago. He was the first to come looking for that ‘thing.’ He found it and left. The other was that one’s father.”

Fai shook his head. “Syaorankun? How...” His jaw dropped as the pieces came together. Seichirou stole the feather, and Syaorankun came here and destroyed the planet to find it, but how had this man survived so long? And if they both came for the feather why could he still feel it here?

Telam came closer, and as he did, his robes painted the floor as they absorbed and troubled the pools of blood. A cold hand came to Fai’s cheek, and a thumb tenderly spread the sick substance from his cheek over his lips as he tilted his chin up to him. “Do you get it all now?” His voice was soft, wrapping around the mage's brain with a tendril of loathing and spite. “You who spends your life running away from everything. The Vagrant King. Sire to the of a world of the dead. A wizard of destruction. Ward of a mad king. From a world destroyed by magic.”

Fai’s lost eyes suddenly focused and hardened into sapphire shards at the litany of titles that spilled from Telam’s mouth as they pierced into that perfect face.

Even though he knew Fai was letting that man touch him for the sake of distraction, Kurogane couldn't help the way it made his blood run cold in his veins. For all that the mage kept trying to convince him he wasn't an idiot, there he was putting himself in danger again, and for what? Clearly Kurogane could attack him again with some sort of similar effect, but no. Fai had to just let that sick, twisted thing come at him and touch him like that. And maybe Kurogane should've tried to stop it. Maybe he should have attacked him again. But all he did was move.

If Kurogane was supposed to feel grateful for the opportunity this provided him, then that backfired. No. And all it did was prove to him that he was right.

He moved a bit faster once he was no longer stepping in the beast blood. He didn't hesitate as he went up those few steps to the top of that platform Telam had been standing on. Fai said it was under here, right? So with one clean slash, he cut down the middle of the platform, not enough to cut through the whole thing, but enough to crack the top away.

With wide eyes, he reached into the chamber below the floor and pulled up what was laying in there: the body of a small boy. Or at least what would have been one if it was made of flesh and bone instead of metal. "What the fuck." He muttered, but he turned and faced the others, holding the body up by its head. "This is what I gotta smash up to get you to stop?"

A howl of anger and Telam’s slender fingers gripped the mage’s with a bruising ferocity as his other hand wrapped tightly around his beast bloodied throat. Fai barely made a whimper as his felt his lungs burn for air against the constricting passages. With unbefitting strength the man hands tightened more, never seeing the knowing glimmer in the wizard’s eyes.

Telam stumbled forward as he found himself no longer squeezing the life from that pale throat, but found only air with in his hands. The mage had phased out to an immaterial projection of his physical form and seemed to walk as a ghost to the ninja’s side.

“That’s it!” Fai rasped out as he became whole once more, his hand instantly over the one that held that little body. Relief played over his features to sit in contrast to the already formed bruises left by Telam’s rage. “You did it.”

“Don’t touch that!” Telam roared as a ball of energy started to form in his hands.

"What, this?" Kurogane smirked a little as he watched the energy form in Telam's hands. He held the body up a bit higher, and more in front of them, though he let out an almost inaudible hiss when the metal fought against the flesh of his shoulder. He knew the blood was seeping through the makeshift bandages around the seam, but he focused on the situation, not the pain.

"Now, if you don't want me to touch this, should you really be preparing to attack me when I'm holding it? All I have to do is squeeze a little and I can crush this." He smirked a bit. "Just like you were about to do to my mage. I won't forgive you for that."

The power stilled upon Talem’s hand. Plasma and molten fire rolled and boiled within itself as though he had manifested the sun to his palm. The room was absent of all sound except that of a lulling thunderstorm worlds away.

“Kurosama...” Fai’s breath caught in his throat as he looked at the metal boy's face. Wet streaks were coming from his eyes washing away eons of aged soot. “It’s crying.”

"That's not possible." Kurogane looked at the face, and sure enough, there was something wet coming from the eyes. "It's just another one of that guy's stupid illusions." He frowned a little, and he went to shake it a little, but the pain in his shoulder was too much, and he lowered his arm enough to let those metal feet rest against the ground, as if that would ease some of the pressure. He dismissed his sword, switched hands, and held it again, this time at the shoulder as he looked back at Telam.

"Stop with the tricks. It's over."

“Tricks? I wonder.” Fai looked up at the ninja’s face as he placed the animatronic down to its feet. Gear shuttered eyes stared blankly forward but tears still streamed down its face in muddy rivers.

Maybe it was curiosity, maybe it was the exhausted mind of the mage, or it was the child like appearance of the creature, but impulse took over. He reached up to its chest with a gentle hand. Blood stained and gentle fingers moved over the metal front, then as if triggered Fai heard a strangled sob come from Jarcus as he hit a switch. A series of clicks and grinding sounds followed before a metal plate slid open and from it popped a circuit board. He knew that shape, but not its texture. It was not made of a soft down but of plastic and wires with tiny lights that blinked in incomprehensible patterns.

“The feather.”


	14. Stoichiometry

It had only taken hours. That morning, he was enjoying breakfast with his family. They weren’t exactly his family, not in that conventional sense, but they were the ones that took care of him. The father was his maker, and their son was his friend. He slept at their house and sat with them at their dinners. Ever since the moment when he started to exist, these were the only people that he had ever known, and they were good people. 

The father had told him that he was special and made with a new technology he managed to duplicate from an energy source that was stolen years prior. It had the power to make illusions real or even your wishes to come true. Even to him it sounded like a bunch of fairy tales, but when you were the walking proof, eventually you had to believe. He might not have been created of the same things as them, flesh and blood, but he was alive. And that made him happy. 

But then HE came. He saw it on TV first, a one man disaster. The boy looked so harmless in the beginning, maybe just a few years older than the family’s son friend, but this weird light came from his fingers and the world started to shake, buildings fell, fire was everywhere. He heard his family chocking on the toxic fumes and he remembered that the mother never made it out of the house.

“We have to power you down. He won’t sense you if you’re not using the power.” That was the last thing he heard before the switch was flipped. 

Time passed and perhaps a rock, perhaps the paw of a passing creature, but something powered him back on. The first thing he saw when his eyes opened again was that toxic green sky, and rubble all around him. There was not even a trace of the metropolis he had called home, and he was alone.

*******************

Surgical fingers removed the circuit from the boy’s chest. Wires reached out for it as if having a mind of their own, desperate to hold on to it before they fell against the metal body like exposed veins. Reverently Fai traced the copper coils with his fingertips, feeling over the raised cylinders of capacitors. “Amazing, it’s almost an exact duplicate.” The mage looked up at Kurogane before turning his head to regard Telam.

“This is you?”

Power still pulsed and swelled in the dark haired man’s hands. “Me?” Telam actually started to laugh, the plasma fading to nothing but a marble of light before winking out in a flash. “You two really are idiots.”

"No? It's not? So then you won't care if I crush this thing to bits then?" Kurogane reached out for the circuit in Fai's hand. He was only half bluffing, and if Telam said anything to stop him, he'd stop. If he didn't? Well, he'd crush it and let it be done.

“No, that child is all that remains of the world you helped destroy. I was created of him.” Telam’s hands folded over his chest. “His desperation created me. His loneliness created me. His anger created me. He is nothing more than an empty doll now. I kept him around out of some form of sentiment really. But even circuits and metal have a life span. I created a world where he didn’t have to be alone, a city, people, anything he wanted since he was my creator. Even when I stopped hearing his voice I wanted to keep his will alive. He used that thing to its limits, hoping that it would call ‘him’ back. And it did.” 

Fai’s expression was a mix of astonishment and pity as he watched Telam pace, telling his story. “It’s like back in Otou, the feather Seiichirou stole was from here and they remade it. An almost perfect copy.” Fai knew from experience that a feather of Sakura’s had the ability to create a life, but a whole world? Not to mention Telam, who was created from it, but somehow seemed to be completely separate of it. “All that, from a computerized, copy?”

“I’m sorry.” A broken voice came from the other side of domed room, its torment echoing off the walls. “He was my responsibility.”

“Syaorankun,” Fai said.

Kurogane listened to the words that came out of Telam's mouth, as nonsensical as they seemed. And he listened to Fai trying to be rational. But it was Syaoran's broken little voice that caused his anger to surge. His first inclination was to yank that circuit from Fai's hand and crush it without a thought. All of this would be over if he did that, wouldn't it? But the likelihood of the mage being angry with him was high, and the kid? Well...

He shook his head a bit. "That's stupid." He said after a moment, his eyes locking on Telam. "You even listen to the shit that comes out of your mouth? You were created by this thing, and you wanted to keep his will alive, but now you don't care if I crush it into tiny little bits? You were hoping to call him back?" He pointed to the kid. "I hate to break this to you, but our kid is not 'him.' Stop trying to force responsibility on him that he doesn't have. Stop blaming other people for something they didn't do. This kid did nothing to you or to this world. We did nothing to you or to this world. You did it. You created and destroyed. You hurt us. What did we do? See through your illusions. That doesn't mean we destroyed something that didn't exist. You did that the instant you went after them."

Telam closed his eyes as Kurogane spoke, his head shaking ever so slightly. “Do you not remember your own history? Your bravado is touching, truly it is. But each of you have a blame to share in this. I knew that boy wasn’t the same one that came here. However, the memories from ‘your mage’ have told me it all started with him,” Telam pointed back at Syaoran. “It was his original wish that set this all in motion. He was the one who sought to break taboo he-“

“-is the reason you were even allowed to live in the first place.” Fai cut the other man off. His fingers curled around the synthetic feather as he sighed. “You wouldn’t even have been created if not for the wish, and this boy,” Gentle fingers wiped the metal cheeks of robotic child, rust staining his fingers copper. “Never would have known a life.” 

“We can blame or thank whatever wishes could have set any multitude of futures into motion. The fact is that even though one person’s wish may be the first branch. Everyone from that point on controls were the stems will go. We can either decide to fight it, or go along with it. To blame Syaorankun, is foolish. Kurosama is certainly correct on that. You were created by the heart of a child. His reasoning couldn’t have been any more than that.” His head bowed and he sighed softly. “As is yours.”

Kurogane rolled his eyes a little and stepped down from the platform. "I don't have the patience for this." He muttered. He carefully walked through those pools of blackish blood until he reached where Fai had set Syaoran down. He crouched a bit and rested his hand on the boy's head, frowning a bit. "I don't know what he did to you, but you're just a kid. It's okay to rely on the adults a little more hm? None of this is your fault."

“Kuroganesan.” Sayoran said before he blacked out again.

He glanced back over his shoulder at Fai and frowned. "Are you going to do it, or am I?"

The mage felt his shoulders jump at the ninja’s ultimatum. Without the circuit board there was nothing left but an empty doll, but a part of him still felt this to be a bit cruel. However, if this was the result of the choice they had made, it was their reasonability to clean it up. 

“This is over,” Fai started as he looked over his shoulder at Talem, his eyes regretful before he looked back at the doll. 

“What are you doing?” 

Pale fingers moved in purposeful patterns over the metal boy’s chest. “No more sentiment.” 

“No!” Fai heard Telam scream, and the shrill pain of it pierced his ears, just as he felt something tear into his side. Shaking pale fingers lifted up to grab the cold steel shaft that now protruded from his abdomen. Before he could register that the blood that slicked the blade was his own, he felt himself being lifted into the air, his full weight pulling down on the sword before he was tossed aside. He looked over as his body arched through the air. Telam had grabbed up the boy into his arms, but it was too late. His spell was cast, and he felt the heat of the explosion against his face even as his body flew back. Pieces of metal whizzed by, leaving cuts against his face and arms even as he tried to right himself.

He never really put any stock into those that said sometimes things seemed to move in slow motion, but here he was, his eyes widening as he watched that man stab the mage and throw him into the air like some sort of doll. He moved before he even realized what he was doing, running through the heat and debris of the blast as he pushed himself and leapt towards the mage. His arms came around that smaller body and he pulled him to his chest, ignoring the searing pain in his shoulder as his flesh tore a little more and focusing on the way his feet hit the floor when he landed. 

Pieces of metal from the explosion stuck into his back, but he remained protectively curled over the mage once the world stopped moving. He laid Fai on the ground and tore at Fai's shirt so he could see just how bad his wound was. "Shit."

“Hey,” The mage said lightly. “I’m getting rusty.” He tried to sit up but the pain that greeted him forced him back on the ground. 

"Don't." Kurogame shook his head, wincing once as he pulled his shirt off, forcing those shards of metal to tear from his skin and hit the ground with little clinks. He found the cleanest part and tore long strips, wrapping them around Fai's body and securing them enough to put some pressure on his wound.

“Kurosama is being nice to me again. I should milk this, “ Fai joked, but he felt the tips of his fingers start to get cold. “Pretty bad, huh? I’ve been worse,” Fai said. “Don’t worry about me. Get Mokona, get Syaoran. We need to get out of here.” As he spoke the world around them started to phase in and out. 

"Only because I don't want to deal with the manjuu on my own." The ninja mumbled and got up, turning to the cage where said manjuu was held. His eyes scanned for any sort of mechanism he could use to open it. When he found a lever, he yanked on it and frowned as the cage fell away. "Go keep that idiot conscious." He whispered before he ran back to Syaoran's side again. 

"All right, kid. We need to go." He reached out to help him sit up. "Come on."

“Faiii,” A tiny fury hand touched Fai’s cheek, and the mage opened his eyes. He’d been barely aware that he closed them at all, and that was certainly not a good sign. 

“Hey, Mokona.” Weakly he laid his hand atop of the creature’s head. “Good to have you back. Do you think we can go now?” Before it could answer Fai blinked, scanning the room. He could still feel it. The fake feather, and if he could still feel it then- “Kurosama! He’s still here!” 

As if the realization summoned the man, he appeared in the middle of the room. His form faded in and out, rage, anger, pain twisted his face until it was just a semblance of humanity. It was as if there was nothing left of the man they’d known, all concentration vanished and this being was all that was left. A fang curved blade was still held firmly in his hand, stained with crimson down to the once white hilt. 

Kurogane froze, holding Syaoran against his side as he helped the boy up. "What?" He frowned and saw the flickering image of Telam, and he realized the whole room was doing it more. He had noticed it when he released Mokona, but he hadn't paid it much mind until now.

Now, that man reappeared and held the bloody blade. But he wasn't solid, was he? If he wasn't solid, he wasn't real. None of this was real, right?

But the small circuit on the floor, surrounded by charred and broken bits of metal, was real. And he knew what he had to do. So he picked Syaoran up, holding him in his arms like a small child, though the boy would probably get mad at him for that, and he went for that circuit.

Telam looked to Kurogane then down to the feather. “No! I won’t let you!” His form vanished again.

"And what can you do?" Kurogane stopped in front of that circuit, nudging it a little with is foot. "You're not real. You can't hurt any of us if you're not real." He nudged the circuit again before he rested his foot over it, not putting any real pressure on it just yet.

"That means none of this is real. I don't need those glasses to know that."

Telam’s form flashed in half way between where he had stood and where Kurogane currently had the circuit under foot. A scream filled the air that wasn’t wholly human. There was a metallic strain that coiled around the echoes of pain like spring held taught.

“Kurosama,” Fai pushed himself up on his hands, eyes fixed onto the ninja and as he watched the background twist and fade. Worlds both illusionary and real were rolling over each other, distorting the senses. Fai couldn’t tell if he was laying on marble or uneven rock, and the sensations forced himself to keep down a wave nausea. “Do it!” He cried around the bile and blood in his throat.

That was all he needed. With one swift motion, Kurogane's foot came down hard on the circuit. It broke under the weight, and he felt the way the pieces crushed as he pushed down.

And that was it. With that simple action, the white was gone. The marble floor beneath them, stained and ugly from blackened beast blood was gone. All of it was gone. They stood on a dusty plateau, jagged rocks sticking up through the dirt, dust blowing in the wind as thunder rumbled in the distance.

Just like that, it was over.

“Do you ever get tired of being the last man standing?” Fai said softly as he pushed himself to lean against one of the outcropping of rocks. “Bring that over.” 

"I'll get tired of it when you get tired of getting hurt." Kurogane lifted his foot to look at the crushed circuit. "This?" He shook his head a little and motioned to the boy in his arms. Syaoran might not have been injured, but whatever mental toll this whole thing had taken on him was too much. 

"If Fai wants it, Mokona will get it!"

The ninja shrugged a little and carried the boy over to the mage, setting him down on the ground next to him. He watched as Mokona took in pieces of the fake feather and bounded back over to them.

A lazy arm slung over his stomach as Fai still felt the wound there. It was taking a moment for his brain to let go of the illusion that it had been there in the first place. His fingers could still feel the dark blood as it seeped between the cloth Kurogane had wrapped around him, but it felt more like a wound that was healing quickly rather than just fading away. “You make it sound like I enjoy this.” Fai shook softly, his hair getting caught up in the wound on his cheek.

“Fai,” Came Mokona’s tiny voice. “It’s gone all that blood is gone.” The manju stated as he came back over to them.

“Hmn,” Fai sat up a little more. “The sword wasn’t real. So I never got stabbed.” He smiled gently at Mokona when he handed him the piece he asked for. It was tiny, just barely the size of a thumbnail. Normally he would be amused at the irony of holding the synthetic feather's memory chip in his hand, but the chill he felt in his fingertips had spread, and the pain in his side hadn’t dissipated. 

“Besides, you don’t look too good yourself, Kurosama.” He laid back and sighed as he regarded the ninja once again. Something was definitely off; his limbs were cold and heavy. “We should probably get out of here.” His words were slow, deliberate, and eyes lids were fighting him. Darkness started to curl in the edges of his vision, shrinking his world, and he closed his eyes tempted to just let it take him.

“Hnm.” Fai groaned softly. No! He couldn’t give up like that! That wasn’t how people like him were allowed to die. But as he forced his sense to come back to him something was different, the world suddenly felt very different. Warm and soft. There was the smell of incense, and something itched his face. “Wha?” 

Cerulean eyes opened, glazed with sleep and confusion as they looked about the familiar surroundings of the time witch's shop. “Eh?” He sat up, and there was barely any pain, but his sides were bandaged in a stiff mortar-like substance. It allowed for some mobility but not a lot. 

“Kurosama?” He didn’t know why that was the first name to fall from his lips, but he was the first person he wanted to see, and there he was. Sitting slumped in a chair, body bandaged and even through the mesh veil of the bed’s canopy he could see the tender bruises on his skin. 

“Kurochin,” Fai called again a bit softer.

Kurogane's head rolled a bit when he heard that voice. His brows furrowed as his eyes slowly opened and he blinked back the sleep that had just finally come to him after watching over the mage. 

He lifted his flesh hand to rub at his neck and he hissed a little when he pulled too much and pressed his fingers into the bruised skin around his artificial arm. He really did a number on it, and while the arm itself was completely fine, his shoulder was black and yellow and all sorts of tender. That's not to mention the cuts all over his back. But it was the mage who was worse off, so Kurogane had insisted that he be helped first. He would fight if he had to. Luckily, he didn't have to. 

So here he was, sitting at Fai's bedside, pushing back the canopy and frowning. "You should still be asleep."

“I should be a lot of things, probably dead 20 times over at this point,” Fai looked around the room a little more. “Syaorankun?”

"He's sleeping, probably." Kurogane shook his head and looked at him. "Do you want me to get him if he's not? He was worried about you."

“Mmnm,” Fai said with a shake of his head. “Let the boy sleep. If Telam did to him what he did to me, than he’ll need it to flush the poison out.” His eyes had come back to rest on Kurogane.

“What about you? The bed looks better than the chair.” Fai moved over to offer the ninja room. The truth of it all he just wanted the man next to him. There was something dreamlike and hazy about this whole experience and he wanted the grounding touch of his companion.

"The chair is better." The ninja shook his head again and nodded towards his injured shoulder. "It is a lot worse for me to lay down than sit up. Besides, you need to rest more. You were a mess."

“Yeah, I know,” Fai deflated a little before he sighed. “You don’t let me get away with anything, do you?” He moved to rearranging the pillows against the head board into a makeshift chair. “Since you’re going to make me say it, I’m going to make you do it. Sit by me. I..” The words were awkward, even for him. “I want you next me.” If he had the blood to spare he was certain he would have been blushing.

For a moment, it seemed as though Kurogane wasn't going to move, but then he stood with a grunt, getting onto the bed and carefully sitting against the pillows Fai set up for him. "Only cause you said it."

“Thank you,” Apparently Fai did have the blood to spare, because the tingle in his cheeks made his wound hurt as he laid his head down on other’s lap. “How long have we been here?”

"Few days. You were unconscious while the kid worked on fixing you. That asshole really messed you up." The larger man closed his eyes when the smaller one laid his head on his lap like that. "Lots of leeches, that sort of thing. It was kind of gross."

“Leeches?” Fai chuckled, not the slightest bit surprised. Internal bleeding, leeches, makes sense. Any high tech equipment in this shop would have been out of place. “Yeah, that jerk really had it out for me, us. The memory chip, did Watanukikun get it?” 

"Yes, he did." There wasn't much else Kurogane could say on that subject. He spent his time thinking about other things. "And as soon as you're recovered, we'll be leaving."

“Hmmn,” Fai nuzzled his leg, the low rumble of Kurogane’s voice was lulling him back to sleep, even if his answers were succinct. “Anything else, happen?”

"No. What would happen? You slept." Kurogane looked down at him. "And you should sleep more." He was very careful as he shifted a little to pull the blankets up a bit more so Fai would stay warm.

“Kurosama is so kind.” The blond shifted slightly as he let his body settle, and soon the room was filled with the sounds of even breathing.

“You should listen to your own advice.” A voice soft as silk filled the room, and with it came the scent of lightly burning tobacco. 

Kurogane chuckled softly and looked at the boy, his lips turning into a bit of a grin. "I was asleep. You know that. This idiot woke me up."

Watanuki smiled warmly as he looked over his charges. “Yes, he is an inconsiderate one. Isn’t he? But I’ll allow it this time. He’s been through a lot. You both have.” He looked pointedly at Kurogane. “I would recommend against this, but we both know where that would go, and she was always a rooting for you two as well.” 

"There's nothing to root for." Kurogane said and looked at Watanuki, that grin from before fading entirely and replaced with a frown. "He's the most inconsiderate, and that's all this is. His selfishness. It's easier to listen than to argue." He looked down at the mage again before sighing a bit. "Don't make it out to be something it isn't."

Those wizened eyes studied Kurogane for a long while. “Say what you will, that’s the most peaceful I’ve seen his face since you brought him in.” 

"It's easy to be at peace around objects." Kurogane muttered.

“Is that so,” Watanuki shook his head and sighed. “You’ll be leaving in about 3 days. You can’t stay much longer than that, I’m afraid. That’s as long as I can give you before Mokona will be forced to take you away. I can’t make any promises on the world you’ll come to next, and you may come across more worlds that will view you how you were seen in Telam. This,” he held up the memory chip. “was unexpected. I hadn’t thought that such a thing could be created, and I’m sorry you were ill prepared for it.”

"Ah. That's why you're so much easier to talk to." Kurogane looked at the boy again and shrugged. "If he's better before that, we can leave sooner. I don't care. I'm not here to impose on you or anything."

“You’re not imposing. If I could I would let you stay as long as you need, but that’s not within my capabilities. Use the three days. Recover. Syaoran and Faisan were not the only people injured. Some wounds are just not as obvious as others.” The new time witch handed a bottle of sake over to Kurogane. 

Kurogane took the bottle and looked at him. "Aa. But some wounds don't heal." He looked down at the bottle watching the way the light shone against it. With a slight shake of his head, he glanced back up at the boy and handed the bottle back to him. "I'm fine."

“You know,” Watanuki started as he took the bottle back with a sigh. “Without a heart to drive them, a sword and a shield are just pieces of metal without purpose.” He stood and walked to the door. “Get some rest.” He whispered softly before walking out.

Kurogane's eyes followed Watanuki until he left. The kid knew, that was obvious. But knowing and understanding are two different things. And no one understood. He had tried and tried, but it was never right. So he had resigned himself to being what he was best at being: a tool. So he let Fai use him as a pillow, and the slices on his back were just reminders that he was a shield. The bruising on his shoulder, a sword.

That's all a ninja lived for anyway, wasn't it?

He closed his eyes and leaned his head back against the headboard, just waiting for some semblance of sleep to come over him.

*****

Three days had gone by quickly, but it seemed to have been enough to get the group back on their feet. Fai peeled the bandage away from his face as he looked himself over in the mirror. A small spark of vanity flared up when he thought that it might scar, but the only person who would have to worry about that would have been Kurogane, but that man barely looked at him much less seemed to care if his face was scarred or not. The next time they had a moment, Fai would talk to him. They couldn’t let things sit the way they were.

“Faisan, we’re ready.” Syaoran’s head poked around the corner and Fai nodded, gathering up their things and making his way to the court yard.

Kurogane watched the doorway and waited for the others. He had been standing in the courtyard for a few minutes. The fresh air was nice, and it made him feel a bit revived, even though the bruising on his shoulder was lighter and the cuts on his back no longer bled when he moved. Fresh bandages couldn't ever replace that feeling of fresh air, especially after the last place.

And so as the others came out, he frowned. His eyes caught Fai's for a split second before he turned to Syaoran and nodded once.

Fai moved his lips to speak, but his voice fell mute when Kurogane looked away, instead he turned his head to focus on the bitter sweet parting of the Mokonas before the white one jumped back into his arms. 

“Is everyone ready?” The forced cheer in its voice was enough to break even the coldest hearts, but what choice did they have? Fai nodded his head after taking a cursory look around at the group.

“Yeah, we’re ready.”

Mokona jumped and the world started to twist and melt. It was never an easy thing for a mage to allow and other source of magic to overtake them, but now the witch's power felt as common place as eating. He closed his eyes and let himself to be taken into the dimensional bridge, silencing all his natural instincts, but something prodded him. Something hadn’t felt right while they floating in that shapeless void. There was a tugging, nothing too strong, but something that felt like string and a gentle pull. He was about to voice his concern when the worlds opened and they dropped to the earth once more.

Feet landed on soft ground. Leaves and pine needles carpeted the earth, while sunlight filtered through the colored leaves of tall, lush trees. Some birds chirped as they flew between branches and darted around, completely carefree even with the new presences. The air was crisp and clean, and a cool breeze rustled through the leaves, dislodging some of them from their stems. As they slowly floated to the ground, there was a rustling.

The birds stopped chirping and flew into the safety of the branches. A squirrel that had just poked out of bush to inspect the disturbance turned tail and fled.

Slow, calculated footsteps came towards them. Each one was heavy, and metal clinked against metal. There was a black blade pointed at them, the tip glinting in a ray of sunlight.

Fai closed his eyes and let the autumn wind tussle his hair and cool his flesh. The sweetness of drying leaves spiced the air as he inhaled of it deeply. “This is a bit more like it.” He said softly before his body froze, and he shot a hand back against Syaoran’s chest to stall him, and Mokona dove into the boy’s collar. 

A blade was pressed firmly to his throat, the chill of the air making the steel bite a little harder. His eyes turned to the right. How had someone gotten the jump on him like this? He didn’t feel anything after they landed, but as he turned to see the man who held him captive, his face paled. Between the black and twisted set of armor that spiked out from the shoulders and the otherworldly visage of a demon etched into the helm with curling horns that arched skyward, Fai saw a familiar face. “K..Kurosama?”

The End….

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> From myself and Deathbyshiny, this is a very heartfelt thank you to all of you who have read our story thus far! This has been a lot of fun, and we have enjoyed reading and replying to the comments and watching the Kudos go. It might not seem like big deal, but knowing that people are reading and enjoying the works you create is one of the best feelings in the world!
> 
> I know we left off on a bit of a cliff hanger, but this is how the World of Telam comes to a close. We will be continuing this timeline in a future story. So please look forward to seeing us again!
> 
> Kuromori – Fai  
> DeathbyShiny - Kurogane


End file.
